


Ripped Threads - REMAKE

by DestinyForestWarrior



Series: PZS - Spider's Web [5]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Karen is still sassy, Multi, OOC, One sided Peter/Harley, Peter is Tony and Pepper's son, Scott is a good Dad, That moment when you decide to rewrite something, Tina is still a Godsend in this story, Tony tries his best, background Michelle/Cindy, the Decathlon Team is amazing to write guys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-08-03 11:39:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 76,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16325507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DestinyForestWarrior/pseuds/DestinyForestWarrior
Summary: I was re-reading Ripped Threads and decided to rewrite the damn thing, there were too many things missing and never accounted for.The story line is the same but improved, as I need to get back into the swing of writing full on chapters.~~~~~Peter Parker wasn't just Spider Man, but his longest kept secret could ruin his entire life if it got into the wrong hands.Like, being the son of Tony Stark and Pepper Potts - known as Zayden Stark.Having to remain as an intern, Zayden realises that an old threat has returned and he must learn to accept people that he wouldn't normally otherwise he wasn't sure how well he'd be able to make it out of this sticky situation.





	1. Chapter 1

Zayden rested against the roof, hearing the honks of the cars below – and much like always there were still a fair amount of people out and about. Many didn’t seem to care for the fact that it was almost one am.

You could never be in full quietness in New York and while Zayden often longed for those times where there was silence, he knew that if he was surrounded by silence it would probably drive him even more insane. He fiddled with the fabric of his suit, questioning whether or not it was a good idea to be out here.

He had decided to take a few weeks off, catching up on all of his school work and intern work at Stark Industries that he had managed to obtain shortly after his fifteenth birthday. Apparently, Tony Stark and Pepper Potts had been keeping an eye on possible interns from the science schools for some time. So, when he put his application in, he got accepted not a few days later.

You see, Zayden wasn’t known as Zayden to everyone around him.

Why would he?

No one would believe him anyway.

Why would he, Peter Parker, actually be Zayden Stark?

The son of Pepper Potts and Tony Stark?

Of _THE_ Iron Man?

Yeah right.

He would be the laughing stock of not just his school.

Of course, Ned and his aunt and late uncle knew of his secret.

Why wouldn’t his aunt and uncle know? His “parents” had taken him in to protect him from someone who wanted to kill him and get back at his real parents. Obadiah Stane.

Humming, Zayden wondered how the government felt about him.

The Slovakia Accords were of much discussion around enhanced individuals, just like himself. Certainly, where would he stand on that topic? Hopefully he was fine. After all, he never killed anyone.

Not even Vulture.

Eyes slipped shut, the sounds of thrusters sounded in his ears, still a fair distance away but closing in quite quickly.

He wasn’t surprised.

Of course, Iron Man was keeping tabs on him.

“Spider Man.” The slightly stilted voice of Tony Stark rumbled through the face piece.

Well, Tony Stark didn’t know he was talking to one of his interns. He just was curious about Spider Man but respected his secret and didn’t delve into who he was – even though Zayden was capable enough to keep his identity off of the web (pun unintended) and Tony was smart enough to figure it out.

“Iron Man.” Zayden responded, resting back fully on the roof, ignoring the unease of how rough the ceiling was on his back.

He would heal any and all wounds without leaving any scars, so he didn’t really give any thought about it. The uncomfortableness of the roof was something he could ignore.

“I was wondering where you had vanished to.” Iron Man said as he sat down on the edge of the ceiling as well. “New York was beginning to worry about her protector.”

Zayden shrugged limply, not sure how to respond. He _did_ know about that. He did show up here and there to deal with certain issues that he really didn’t want any of the Avengers getting involved with. 

There were a few other vigilantes that did their own things, but after the Accords Zayden decided he should keep a closer eye himself. Plus, he wasn’t New York’s only protector but probably the one that it liked the most.

“I’m the only vigilante that has even showed their face around New York in the past few weeks.” He said, waving his hand.

Zayden did _not_ need to see Tony’s face to see the amused expression that he was certain he was sporting. He could even tell that Tony was about to say something so Zayden jumped in on his comment.

“Yeah, yeah, I _know_. Pun fully intended, fully ironic.”

“I thought so.” Tony hummed, turning back to stare across the city that never slept. “I missed your quips.”

That sent a flutter through Zayden’s heart but he squashed it down.

Tony had no idea he was talking to his intern, let alone his son who he lost almost fifteen years ago. Not that that was something that Zayden wanted to tell him, just yet. Anyway, he would just know him as Peter Parker, a kid too smart for his age who also had issues with the Princess of Wakanda.

Most of those issues stemmed with culture differences and what they considered jokes and insults.

Zayden never minded being insulted by being a white male, but the continuation of them did get grating after a while.

“You are probably the only one.”

“Maybe the police also miss you.”

“They see me enough.”

They do. Zayden did still help them out and they were still thankful.

Except, Zayden dug his fingers into his palms, eyes narrowing beneath his mask. Sometimes he really hated the police and the discrimination against those with darker skin – the African Americans who were going about their lives. That and how they got away with it too.

“What is it?” Tony asked, tone becoming softer but if Zayden didn’t have super hearing he wouldn’t have noticed the shift in his tone.

Zayden wasn’t sure how he should explain his thought processes.

“It’s just…The police department…Why do they have such a discrimination against African Americans? Or Muslims? Or anyone from the Middle East? Or anyone who isn’t white?”

Tony was silent and Zayden shifted and turned his head to look at the man.

“It’s just…Our culture is set into the views that white males are superior.” Tony said, sounding heavy with stress and anguish at that comment.

Well, Zayden did know that.

He snorted. “Funny, white males often cause the most trouble.”

“They are allowed to express their egos and get away with it.” Tony explained, well more like corrected.

Silence settled around them, except for the screeching of tyres and cars honking. Yells from drivers and pedestrians alike. Dogs barked in the distance. However the air around them was silent as they remain in silence, the world may have been loud but it didn’t matter to them.

Zayden could almost forget that he wasn’t alone but he still didn’t call Karen to his location.

Karen, that name brought a smile to himself. His AI was a beautiful thing, even though she was the sassiest thing in the world – and often drove Zayden’s head in. She didn’t seem to care but was more emotional than most people he met. It was an error in her code that he couldn’t bring himself to change as he’d grown to used to her and her witty remarks.

He decided to make conversation. “So…How is everything with the Avengers?”

No-one had really heard from the Avengers since the Accords came into the public’s eye. So, not even Zayden knew what was going on.

It was a sensitive topic as noted by Tony’s sudden stiffened shoulders and tense posture.

He understood. “I get it if you don’t…”

“No.”

The short and curt reply made Zayden pause and stare at him with a confused expression – even if it couldn’t be seen. Tony seemed to realise how stern his response was.

“Sorry, it’s…it’s not that, kid.”

“I’m not a kid.” Zayden muttered under his breath and the head piece moved up so he could look at Tony’s expression. He seemed amused but his expression changed into something darker and more remorseful.

“The Accords is a messy business, Spidey.” Tony explained. “Not everyone is willing to follow their guidelines.”

Zayden raised an eyebrow and felt almost compelled to remove his own mask but knew that would be a stupid and poor decision. Zayden would know about stupid decisions. “So, they don’t want to be able to be held accountable for their actions? Even I don’t do anything against the law.”

That earned him another smirk. “Like running around as a vigilante in a spider themed suit isn’t against the law?”

“You know what I mean.”

“I do.”

The laugh that followed made Zayden huff in annoyance as he folded his arms over his chest and stared up at the sky. Never seeing the stars because the light pollution was just too dense to make out the individual points of light in the sky.

While the laugh had relaxed him, he was still wondering about the entirety of the Accords business. Biting his lip, Zayden took a deep breath and exhaled.

“Any issues?” Zayden asked, voice softer and unsure if he should be asking the questions on his mind.

“No.”

That was a blatant lie.

You didn’t even need to be able to detect lies to hear it.

It was really bloody obvious.

Zayden furrowed his brows but didn’t push the issue any further. He wouldn’t get anywhere and he understood that very well.

“The Accords mean well, but all laws and rules change over time.” Zayden muttered. “Don’t they understand that?”

“They refuse to acknowledge it.” Tony replied, turning away slightly to study the cityscape and shook his head. “Especially Steve…”

He caught himself.

It caught Zayden’s attention. He was glad that his mask hid his curious expression so he could play it off and not show his interest. While his tone may give it away, it wouldn’t be so blatantly obvious.

“So, there are issues.” Zayden quirked, feeling his own lips twitch upwards.

Tony opened his mouth to argue but snapped it shut and shook his head. “I’m not going to bother you with our issues, kid. You have enough issues around New York that you don’t really need to get involved with.”

Zayden stretched. “So? New York is my home, I should help out where I could. Plus, I’m an enhanced individual. Shouldn’t I help out with the Accords if possible?”

“Maybe, but I’d rather not drag you into this situation if I can help it.” Tony pointed out.

“Fine.” Zayden nodded, sitting fully up and deciding he should go home.

He did promise May that he wouldn’t stay out that late and it was already nearing one am.

Plus, he did have school the next day and the internship right after. It was going to be a long ass day if he didn’t get enough rest.

“I should leave and go home.” Zayden spoke, jumping to his feet and not even caring when his feet landed a bit too close to the edge of the roof.

He noticed Tony reach out to him before catching himself. Apparently, he remembered that Spider Man is fully capable of catching himself if he did fall. Zayden was relieved that Tony was willing to help him even though he didn’t know him, he could only imagine how Tony’s attitude will change once the secret is out. That wasn’t something Zayden was eager to learn.

“Yeah, yeah.” Tony nodded. “Sounds like a good idea.” His lips twitched upwards. “Probably your smartest idea yet.”

Zayden grinned under his mask but it was clear in his tone. “Perhaps you want me to teach you how to come up with grand ideas and plans?”

Tony pulled a face and rolled his eyes when he heard Zayden’s laugh rip through the air.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, kid.”

Zayden quickly whispered out to Karen who, being connected to his suit, heard it loud and clear. He had been considerate towards his AI and given her many forms so she could slip into a bird or a cat or a mouse in order to follow him and help him with certain things he needed done.

He could hear the slight grating of metal wings cut through the air, getting closer by the second. He forgot how fast that form could move.

Zayden shot a look over his shoulder at Tony. “Remember, come and find me when you want help with plans.”

His voice lilted before he leaped off the edge of the building, landing on the robotic eagle that caught him just in time. Zayden didn’t need to look to know Tony had lurched forward towards him.

“I will see you soon, Stark~” He called, ensuring that Tony could hear him clearly.

He heard the amused huff of laughter come from behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony watched as the robot faded into sight, heading towards one of the burrows. Though, he doubted it was heading towards where Spider Man did live. He was too intelligent to do something so stupid by making it possible to track him.

“I wonder who you are, Spider Man.” Tony murmured to himself.

He knew he could find out about it himself, but Tony had managed to slowly gain a trust with the young vigilante. He really didn’t want to ruin that slight bond that had begun to grow.

He had felt a slight draw towards him, nothing that should be a warning. Just a desire to watch over him and ensure that Spider Man wasn’t doing something that he really shouldn’t be. Further cementing himself as the unbridled watchful eye over him and keeping him out of the United Nation’s gaze.

Tony gazed around New York alone now. “Who are you?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wanted a school chapter - thankfully this was done quickly and was fine. 
> 
> Mwahaha you can probably tell who is seen at the end of the chapter - because they are still very important to the story line.

Zayden groaned loudly as he rubbed his temples, trying to keep his eyes from slipping shut and drifting into sleep. The metal lockers were cold against his skin and managed to keep his temperature down and also eased his headache.

Zayden could hear someone approaching him, the footsteps made it clear to him as to who it was.

“You look like shit.”

“Good morning to you too, Ned.” Zayden grumbled, leaning back and opening his eyes to shoot a mild glare at Ned who just seemed worried about his best friend.

“What is up with you?” Ned asked, dropping his voice so no one could over hear their conversation.

But it was high school, no one gave a single fuck about what you were talking about unless it was about the teachers or another student and then all ears would be on you.

“Late night.” Zayden responded, pushing himself off of his lockers and staring at his best friend who didn’t even bother trying to hide his worry and concern. “Don’t worry, I just need to get back into the swing of things.”

Ned groaned loudly as Zayden grinned widely at his pun.

“Your puns are terrible, Pete.”

“You love them all the same.”

Ned pulled a face as they reached his locker for him to rummage around and trying to find his books. “If by love you mean hate them with my entire being, then yes.”

“You are such a kill-joy.” Zayden huffed, but there was no heat with his words.

They both knew that Ned was the one who asked Zayden to do things such as showing off a bit and Zayden always had to remind Ned that they couldn’t get sloppy.

Lest someone figure out who Spider Man is.

Except for that incident.

They don’t talk about Vulture – Adrien Toomes.

“I am not a kill-joy.” Ned insisted. “I am just reminding you that school is more important at the moment.”

“I know that.” Zayden insisted.

He did, he really did.

He took several weeks off being Spider Man to focus purely on school after all. It was something May loved and Ned was relieved he didn’t have to worry so much about his best friend falling asleep on his feet anymore.

Zayden shrugged helplessly. “It’s just…The Accords.”

“Are none of your concern.” Ned argued, almost slamming his locker shut on Zayden’s hand if he didn’t move it out of the way in time. “And you know that so why are you so stressed about it?”

“Just something Tina mentioned to me a while back.” Zayden muttered as they both headed towards home room. “About what is coming ahead of us.”

Ned wanted to ask, but Zayden didn’t even know how to further explain it. Tina just had this way of knowing what will happen and the knowledge that she often can’t change the future but she can try at the very least. He had gotten used to her random ramblings and tried to recall them but sometimes he was unable to do so.

Suddenly, Ned froze and frowned. “Like Flash?”

Zayden snapped his head up to see Flash and his friends making their way towards him. There was a certain someone with him that Zayden was not surprised to see.

Harley Keener.

Probably the one person who everyone expected to take over Stark Industries as it was just a matter of time until it was revealed to the public. Since people knew that Harley and Tony Stark knew each other pretty well, he currently was staying with the Starks.

Also, the one person who Zayden didn’t like.

Not because Harley is a bad person, he was actually quite nice, but Zayden just didn’t like the fact that it seemed as though Tony and Pepper had moved on from him. It was petty but Zayden couldn’t help how he felt sometimes but at least he tried his best to not act on those feelings. Tried being the key word.

“Look, it’s Penis Parker and Loser Leeds.” Flash sneered.

Zayden grumbled as he adjusted the straps of his bag on his shoulder. “Hello to you too, Flash.” He raised his voice a little bit. “How long did it take you to come up with those names? Five seconds? Maybe even five hours?”

Ned shot Zayden a look and tugged on the back of his jacket, a silent warning to him to keep his mouth shut and not aggravate Flash. They did not need to explain why Zayden’s bruises suddenly vanished within seconds. It was a wonder no-one had noticed it yet. That and there was no point in getting into any kind of argument or fight.

“Don’t.” Ned hissed quietly.

Zayden rolled his eyes and murmured. “I wasn’t going to do anything. Not my fault if Flash’s ego is hurt.”

Flash stiffened and curled his lips back but Zayden didn’t even blink. “My ego is not hurt.” The hiss sounded grating on Zayden’s ears but it was something he was extremely used to when it comes from Flash.

A grand departure from their past where Flash rarely snapped or spoke rudely to others. It was still something that confused Zayden but he was unable to talk about it. Flash wasn’t one to speak nicely and Zayden reacted accordingly.

“You make a sound argument, Flash. How could I ever assume that your ego has taken a massive blow?” Zayden stressed, the sarcastic tone lingering in the air around them. He must be tired if he being so snarky and sarcastic.

But before Flash could do anything, Harley leaped forward and tugged him backwards. “Come on, don’t we have a class to get to?”

“Yeah. Can’t be late.” Ned laughed uneasily, looking between the tense stare down between Flash and Zayden.

An awkward silence hung between the pair, before they were interrupted by a few other voices. Abe, Charles, Cindy, Sally and Michelle. When they saw the scene, they exchanged glances between themselves, before joining Ned in dragging Zayden away. Their senses of picking up what was wrong was probably amplified by Ned sending them a pleading look to help him out.

“What is up with you?” Michelle hissed, eyes blazing but Zayden had not removed his gaze from Flash and Harley.

Flash sneered. “You are only jealous that I know Tony and Pepper better!”

Zayden snarled. “I don’t know why I would be? Seems pointless to know celebrities.”

He barely noticed Michelle pinching his arm in warning.

Harley broke in. “Come on, guys. Tony and Pepper know Peter well enough. Let’s just drop this.” He glanced at Zayden with a silent question but Zayden did not want to even consider what the question was.

His relationship with Flash was pretty much tarnished from the second they started high school, and even if Zayden wanted to fix it, he doubted he could. It would be too much work and stress.

Zayden managed to wrangle himself out of his friends’ grip but remained with them. It would do no good to walk away from them, lest it get all of them into big trouble.

“I’m fine.”

Abe raised an eyebrow. “Right, and I am a hero by the name of Black Tiger.”

Zayden snorted as the others chuckled to themselves. It was a running gag between them to ask what their superhero names would be if they became heroes.

“Black Wolf.” Charles argued. “I keep telling you that you aren’t threatening enough to be a tiger.”

“And wolves are less threatening than a tiger?” Abe turned to Charles and continued to walk backwards. “They are still dangerous.”

Zayden suddenly noticed that Abe was walking backwards towards a pole.

“Abe…” Zayden murmured before getting nudged by Cindy who shook her head and her eyes alight with playfulness. He huffed out a chuckle and bit the inside of his cheek.

“Wolves have been domesticated.” Charles pointed out. “Tigers haven’t.”

“Exactly. I am a wild beast.” Abe puffed out his chest and before they could say anything he had walked straight into the pole. The loud ringing pierced through Zayden’s ears but he joined the others in laughing.

It only increased when Abe started swearing at the pole in a mix of English, Spanish and Kenyan. A teacher walked past just as Abe was declaring that the pole should be shoved up someone’s ass and they immediately hurried off to their home rooms, still cackling as the scene. Abe complained loudly at the fact that the pole was out for him even though it an inanimate object.

Zayden just smiled at his friend’s antics.

Maybe Abe could be a tiger.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lunch had rolled around with no issues between Flash and Zayden again. That might not last forever, and Zayden was expecting an interrogation between them by the end of the day. Or Harley trying to tell Zayden to not get into a fight with Flash, despite the fact Zayden would claim that Flash almost always starts those fights.

However, for now, there was no current issue and Zayden and his friends were calm at their table – as calm as they could while still chatting loudly amongst themselves. Their lunches strewn about and getting mixed up with everyone else’s. None of them really cared if they had gotten someone else’s lunch or bit of lunch. It was a normal occurrence for them.

Except today was different.

No, it had nothing to do with Harley watching him.

That was a given at this point.

Also, Zayden was pretty sure that Harley liked him – he was just as obvious as Zayden was about his crush on Liz.

That relationship was a disaster waiting to happen.

Even before he found out that her father was the Vulture.

No.

It had nothing to do with Harley.

It didn’t even have anything to do with Princess Shuri – and Zayden will admit that sometimes his thoughts may stray a little away from ‘innocent’. He won’t ever say that out loud however, he quite liked living and was terrified of what Shuri could do to him.

Yes.

What _Shuri_ could do to him.

To be honest, T’Challa isn’t threatening compared to his smarter and more brilliant sister. Even if he was enhanced. That was nothing to brains. Brains over brawn as he heard from Tony during one of their first interactions.

But, still, nothing to do with that.

In fact, it had nothing to do with anyone who wasn’t at their table.

“Are they dating?” Zayden hissed under his breath, curious and stumped by what was in front of him. Well, what _wasn’t_ in front of him. There was obviously something there but he couldn’t see it.

Ned looked up from his burger. Well, more like half of Charles’ burger that had ended up in front of him that day. “What are you talking about?”

Zayden couldn’t make any sudden movement, it would catch their attention. “Are they dating?” His voice was low, but still loud enough for Ned to hear him.

Sally shot him an annoyed expression and turned back to her phone, reading something NASA related for sure. She always was.

“I think you are overthinking something.” Ned spoke, following Zayden’s gaze to the two people in question. “They are friends.”

Zayden snorted and ducked his head. “Just friends don’t hold hands like that.”

His best friend sighed and gave him a pointed look. “Bro.”

“I’m serious.”

“You need to get a hobby.”

“I do have a hobby.”

“A better hobby.”

“It’s a great hobby.”

“No, it isn’t.”

Sally had turned from her phone to face them directly. “What on Earth are you two discussing?”

Zayden huffed. “Ned is claiming my hobby is terrible.”

“What hobby is it?” Now she looked intrigued.

_Fuck./i > Zayden cussed. He really didn’t think that statement through well enough. And Ned had the audacity to smirk at him for his mess up. So much for being his best friend._

_“Um…Making plans for a hoverboard.”_

_Stupid save._

_She won’t believe it._

_Sally leaned back, not looking like she believed him but it was better than the alternative. Outright saying that he was talking shit. Which he was but he’d rather keep that a secret. Then again, he was actually making a hoverboard prototype for his Stark Internship so it could be a good save._

_“Okay. Your internship being a pain?” She asked._

_Zayden’s gaze flicked to the side before returning to her. “Yeah, you could say that.”_

_Sally followed his gaze and hummed before whispering to him and Ned. “Do ya think they’re dating?”_

_“No.” Ned snorted but Zayden nodded his head. “Definitely.”_

_“They aren’t like that.” Ned tried to insist but Zayden and Sally were distracted by eyeing their friends._

_You see, Michelle never sat next to people, especially if there were empty seats around._

_Yet, she was sitting right next to Cindy._

_Their hands too close for it to be “casual friendship touching”. It could be but Zayden has been their friend for a while and hasn’t seen them interact that way with anyone else. Especially not Michelle who doesn’t like to interact like that with anyone._

_Michelle whispered something into Cindy’s ear and they both made a jab at Charles who whined when Abe stole one of his chocolate cookies with a tongue out._

_Zayden and Sally both turned to Ned who just huffed in annoyance._

_Sally took a sip of her water bottle. “Have either of you heard anything from Spider Man? He’s been a bit MIA, hasn’t he?”_

_“Maybe it has something to do with the Accords.” Zayden spoke up. “He’s probs staying under the radar.”_

_“Smart.” Sally nodded, deciding that Zayden’s words were more plausible than anything else that others could come up with. Not that they were paying attention to them._

_It was why he was staying out of the radar anyway. The Accords were a tricky business right now, better not to make it worse._

_Zayden risked a glance over to Michelle and Cindy and the former met his gaze before glaring daggers at him. A silent warning, he was smart enough to heed._

_Zayden glanced over his shoulder upon feeling another gaze on his back. It didn’t feel like the one from Harley and he was to his side so a gaze on his back from Flash made no sense. Flash and Harley were sitting next to each other after all._

_There was nothing._

_Not even anyone looking away from him to avoid his gaze._

_Then again, high school students rarely did._

_They would meet your gaze with an even stare._

_Whoever it was didn’t want to be found but at the same time had no qualms with almost being noticed._

_Zayden suddenly paused, brows furrowing as he stared at someone walking through a corridor nearby. The being was not someone Zayden recognised in the school grounds and it definitely wasn’t a teacher or any staff. He could hear their footsteps and could follow them because of that. When they came back into sight, their gaze was locked instantly onto his._

_He almost reeled back._

_The person vanished behind the wall and suddenly Zayden couldn’t feel them anywhere._

_No._

_It wasn’t a person; it didn’t feel like a human. It felt older, stronger and beyond human comprehension._

_Zayden shook his head slightly as he turned back to his food but felt another set of eyes on his._

_The familiar heated glare made him aware that it was Flash. Zayden decided that he wouldn’t humour him and pointedly kept his gaze on his friends._


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has my favourite things
> 
> Harley and Zayden
> 
> Tina and Zayden
> 
> and Karen being sassy
> 
> This is possibly my favourite remade chapter thus far (there is one really soon that I also love)

Stark Industries.

The building loomed over him and didn’t seem to fail in making a pit begin to form in Zayden’s stomach. His hands tightened around his bag’s straps as rubbed his eyes to try and ease his tiredness.

Man, Zayden really didn’t want to go there after school.

He was too tired, mind groggy and sluggish as he made his way into the lobby. He nodded towards the receptionist who smiled in return but then paused as she studied his face but Zayden had closed his expression off to one that didn’t show his fatigue.

He didn’t need people questioning him on if he is okay. Even if he wasn’t.

“Peter!” Zayden turned his head to face Harley who was bounding towards him.

How was he so energetic?

Then again, Harley probably got eight hours of sleep every night. Zayden really should as well, but he didn’t really want to feel jealous. Sleep was difficult to get regardless.

Zayden made a quiet noise, a humming noise that he wanted to alert to Harley that something was off. He was not in the mood to talk.

“Tony has news for us.” Harley chattered, seemingly unaware that Zayden wanted peace and quiet. “Just don’t bother asking me what it is, I have no idea. And believe me, I asked. I asked a lot. It’s like they want to keep something hidden from everyone here. I dunno why. Maybe it has something to do with the Accords…”

Harley continued to trail off with his chatter and Zayden just rested his head against the cold metal of the elevator as FRIDAY took them to the floor where the interns were requested to be. The chatter was nice background noise even if he really didn’t want to listen to anyone. Despite having mixed feelings about Harley, Zayden knew that he really didn’t know the guy. He moved to New York for something to do with his family from what he gathered from what he overheard from Harley speaking to other people.

Rarely to him.

Zayden didn’t really understand that. Didn’t get why Harley only spoke to Zayden freely away from school.

They only really spoke at times like this. On Friday after they both reached the building straight after school before they headed off to their own sections of the floor. Harley sometimes went further up depending , but often remained with the other interns.

Even at school their conversations were fleeting.

Flash made sure to remain Harley’s ‘friend’, even though Zayden and Ned both knew that Flash would ditch Harley the second he found someone ‘better’. AKA, someone with better ties to celebrities. Except, here in New York, knowing Tony Stark personally and helping Iron Man got you in the good books of a lot of different people.

And the bad books of just as many.

Zayden would know that considering how often he had to foil plans people made involving Harley. Not that anyone knew that it was him nor did they know Spiderman was protecting Harley. If they did, he’d be asked about it more often with questions he really didn’t want to answer.

Zayden spoke up without thinking. “Are you alright?”

Harley stopped in his chatter about something with a guy who can change his size with his suit and stared at Zayden with a confused expression, perplexed by Zayden’s seemingly random question. “Yeah, I am. Why?”

Idiot.

Of course, Harley is fine.

Zayden shrugged and leaned back, standing up fully once more. “It’s just…I thought I heard that something happened with you recently and a group who have something against Mr. Stark.”

Harley paused, staring at his hands as they lowered to play with the hem of his shirt. He was silent but really, Zayden knew he was fine. His entire being had darkened with conflicting thoughts, which Zayden only suspected.

“Yeah…Something happened a few nights ago. I was worried but Spider Man was there. I guess they weren’t expecting him to show up, he has been staying off the radar for a little while.” Harley suddenly brightened. “But, Tony saw him last night and spoke with him so it seems like he’s returning to his usual patrols. That’s good, anyone could tell that people were getting worried that their local vigilante had upped and left them to their own devices.

“The law breakers were getting a bit too out of hand. It threw the police off especially since the Avengers weren’t known for getting involved with the little people. But now they don’t seem to be worried that Spiderman has just gone without warning.”

Zayden nodded.

He understood everything about the peoples thoughts on Spiderman not being around. Yes, he was guilty for doing that but he only started back up because Harley was in danger that one time.

He didn’t even mean to come out and find Harley, he just so happened to hear his familiar yell from a few blocks away and rushed over to see what the issue was. Harley had been cornered and the goons were talking about getting some good cash out from Tony Stark. Zayden saw this and was capable of doing something so he did. He took out the assailants and told Harley to leave as soon as he got there and the people were dealt with. They didn’t have to know that he watched to make sure that Harley had gotten back to Stark Tower in one piece without any more issues.

They didn’t need to know that Harley was one of the main reasons he started going back into his patrols.

Harley raised an eyebrow as the door opened and they stepped out onto the floor. “How did you know something happened?”

“I happened to be awake when Spider Man swung by near my place and he stopped for a quick chat.” Zayden lied easily – it was much easier to lie when people couldn’t see your face. That was something he quickly came to learn and he still wasn’t facing him.

Harley glanced at him and nodded, probably knowing that Zayden was lying but didn’t push it. He was glad for that. The two walked through the hall and into the main room where everyone else was situated. Chatting about why they were here in the first place. Something must be up.

Probably most likely relating to what Harley said previously.

Zayden entered one of the side rooms but felt a hand come out and grab his upper arm and before he could react he was yanked to the side.

He yelped out loudly but heard a “shush” from right beside his ear. His eyes focused in the mild darkness of this part of the room and noticed a pair of bright blue eyes that appeared purple in certain light. The dimness of the room was that exact light level, causing them to be quite startling before Zayden could make out the figure.

“Tina? What?”

Tina Wilson frowned and glanced at the other people, but they remained hidden and out of sight. “Keep your voice down and follow me.”

Zayden was confused but didn’t argue as he followed her into one of the window rooms. She didn’t walk towards the window however, just turned around to focus on Zayden who tried to distract himself by gazing around.

The room was pale and was very lacklustre compared to the rest of the rooms. Piles and stacks of boxes filled the corners but Zayden wasn’t too surprised no one found it before. It was isolated and quite a traversing walk from the main room. Plus, the windows were most definitely tinted.

“I never knew this room was here.” Zayden let out a slightly stifled laugh but noticed that Tina was still looking extremely serious. He sighed and leaned against one of the chairs, his chuckles eased instantly when he recognised the seriousness that filled Tina’s entire posture. “Okay…What is it?”

She said nothing for a while and turned away from his gaze. He was about to assume she wasn’t going to answer but a heavy sigh rang from her chest.

“It’s the world. It’s changed.”

“Changed? How so?”

Tina’s eyes looked startling blue, almost glowing purple in the low light.

“Corrections have been made.” She huffed and then shook her head as if to rid those thoughts from her mind. “Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing really. It won’t affect anything major down the line. Timelines are being made and altered, this is just one among many.”

“You sound bothered by that fact.” Zayden walked towards her.

She really did.

Tina rarely got agitated and bothered by things, she knew the future no matter how dark and cold it was. Zayden had learned to take heed of Tina’s words – but she only warned him of things that he _could_ change. Not everything could be changed and somethings were meant to happen and nothing anyone did could change it.

Her knowing that he was Spider Man helped with it as well. She trusted him.

Knowing that, Zayden felt like he could trust and feel more confident in himself.

After all, Tina never gave any indication that he wouldn’t become someone who they couldn’t trust.

“I am but it’s nothing that can be changed.” She paused and corrected her words. “It is nothing that _should_ be changed. If it is changed then the world falls apart.”

Ah.

It was one of those cases.

He’d been told by her about the Accords and how it would tear the Avengers apart yet got visibly distressed when Zayden said he wanted to ensure that didn’t happen. He realised that perhaps the Accords should happen the way that they were meant to. If it came out well on the other end. Though the tear in the Avengers would be difficult to face since he’d know that it was meant to happen.

Zayden raised an eyebrow. A silent question that thankfully Tina got – then again, she probably knew what he wanted to say.

“We are spending a week here at Stark Industries to work on personal projects.” Tina said, eyes changing back to their soft blue. “Our families have already accepted it and he just needs our permission.”

Our.

The way Tina always said that made it seem like she wasn’t included into that group. Almost as though it was the polar opposite of the royal ‘we’. Actually, it probably was. He didn’t know much about Tina but knew her family situation wasn’t the best. She was most likely relieved to get away from it all.

Also, that would tie into what Harley had said prior to them entering the floor.

“You sure?” Zayden didn’t doubt her words but didn’t want to totally believe it.

It seemed perfect.

Though a few seconds later he realised what it meant.

He couldn’t go on patrols!

He had spent a few weeks away from patrols and now he’d have to stop them once again? Seriously? Was life set on making his decisions difficult?

Tina’s lips twitched upwards. “Perhaps now you can focus on things that aren’t patrols. You have a personal project to work on instead.”

“Maybe…”

“Unless you want Stark to realise you’ve hacked into his AI.” Tina stressed ‘Stark’ in a way that made it all too obvious as to why that is.

“Unless you want people to figure it out from your words.” Zayden mimicked by stressing ‘you words’ which made Tina roll her eyes. It didn’t hold the same weight and meaning.

“Look. It’s a wonder how no-one has figured out your two secrets, Parker.” Did she have to say that in such a patronising manner? “You can barely keep your mouth shut most of the time, not saying it’s a bad thing but secrets always have a way of coming out.”

“Not if I have anything to say about it.”

“It’s a secret. You’re not meant to say anything about it.” Tina swatted at the back of his head, ignoring his cry of indignation and ducking away from her hand.

Zayden shot her an annoyed look which she only laughed at before frowning as she gazed around the room. Zayden had moved towards the door, wanting to leave and get away.

“That’s what different. You don’t have Karen.”

Zayden paused. “Different?”

“Yeah.” Tina nodded. “You had Karen in…” She groaned. “You know what. Never mind. It’s difficult to explain.

The male teenager nodded to himself. “Well, Stark,” stressing the name which caused Tina’s eye to twitch in mild irritation, “saw her last night so I can’t risk him recognising her by chance.”

Tina merely raised an eyebrow. “I’m impressed you revealed your AI to him so willingly. But, I already knew that. I wanted to see if you would tell me the truth.”

“Certainly, you would’ve known if I was going to tell the truth or not.”

“Nope. I don’t work like that. I can have a rough guess of what you will say but what you choose is up to you. Everything leads to the same point anyway.” Tina shrugged as she led Zayden out of the room with her hand on his shoulder. She winked at him. “Such as a certain vigilante and a princess.”

“Please. Shuri’s out of my limit. She could never like someone like me.” Zayden scoffed but even he could hear the pain and hurt in his voice.

“Not with that attitude she won’t.” Tina agreed. “But, I’m a good friend. There is hope for the two of you yet.” Suddenly she seemed distant before chuckling to herself. “Not for a while but still…”

Zayden was going to ask what she meant but then Tony Stark was entering the floor and called out loudly, catching the attention of all the interns.

“Hello, lovely interns.”

Tina whispered into Zayden’s ear. “We can’t keep dear ol’ dad waiting, huh?”

Zayden shot her a glare but followed her as she skipped towards the other interns. She must’ve said something to Jasmine who looked at her quizzically.

Oh man.

Zayden really wanted to kill her sometimes. But, she was his friend. A pretty eccentric friend but a friend, nonetheless.

“I have a proposition for you lot.” Tony’s grin said a lot and Zayden suddenly realised that May must’ve agreed to this stupid idea. If she didn’t then Zayden hoped that he can convince her otherwise.

Could the ground swallow him up whole?

Or for him to just vanish?

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden threw his bag onto his bed and scowled at the window. Karen was perched on his desk, watching him with eyes that were filled with more emotion than an AI should be able to possess. The light scattered through the window and illuminated her eyes and fake fur.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, her usual sarcasm and snark being replaced by genuine worry and concern for his boss and creator.

He shook his head, not wanting to say anything to her. One of Karen’s front paws scratched the top of the table, her tail swishing and her eyes seemed to darken slightly. It really was nothing, he was just bothered slightly by things in his life.

“May?” Zayden called out. There was a beat of silence before his aunt responded from the kitchen.

“What is it?”

“Did you agree to me spending a week at Stark Industries?”

Another beat of silence.

With that Zayden made his way towards the kitchen with Karen following after him. Her robotic claws clicking against the floor in a way that calmed the teenager down immensely. Man, he really wish May didn’t have the habit of not responding straight away when he asked a question from a different room.

“Did you?” Zayden asked again when he reached the kitchen island.

“Maybe. It’s your choice.” May explained and finished drying her hands on a towel. “I would like for you not to go. It would be too emotionally difficult for you.” She eyes him carefully. “I can tell them that you would not be able to attend the next week. Push the idea that you want to focus more on schoolwork.”

“No.” Zayden said simply, confused for a moment as to why May was suddenly opposed to him spending a week at Stark Industries. “My schoolwork is fine and I can deal with it.”

It had been like that for a while and it started after Ben’s death.

Zayden had been given time off from his internship to properly mourn his uncle’s death for a reasonable amount of time. However, afterwards May had become seriously protective of him, banning him from patrols – but he couldn’t just do that. Which also kept him from his internship which had worried SI, since there was no explanation for it all.

Patrols helped clear his mind and he could talk to anyone without giving anyway who he was.

Humans are not the most observant of people most of the time.

It was her idea to get him an internship at Stark Industries claiming that it would be good to spend a bit of time with his parents and actually talk with them. Even if they didn’t know. Now, in moments like this it seemed like she regretted suggesting the internship for it.

“I want to go.” Zayden stated which May acted surprised at. Though, really – no-one should’ve been. Zayden was stubborn when he wanted to be. “I have some ideas that I can work on there, and I won’t need to go to school. It’s a win-win situation.”

Okay, he’ll miss his friends but he can still call them from Stark Tower. So, it wasn’t like that was a negative outcome.

After a relatively tense dinner, Zayden slipped into his suit and quickly set out to patrol New York. He didn’t want to understand why May was so hesitant to let him be with his parents. Why was she so opposed to it now?

He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and pointedly chose to lament on those thoughts later.

Zayden had managed to web up a couple of thieves before settling down on a rooftop in Queens. He gazed around and let out a long breath of air.

Karen landed beside him and blinked her bright yellow eyes. “Have you heard about the friend of Vulture’s that is roaming America?”

“Yeah, I have.”

“What are we going to do about it?” Karen was curious about what Zayden’s response would be.

“Nothing yet. I doubt they’ll do anything for the time being.” Zayden sighed heavily and furrowed his brows. “Something else seems like it is more threatening than this _friend_.”

Karen grumbled. “You should be keeping an eye out for him, ya know. Just in case.”

Zayden shrugged. “That’s a problem for future Zayden.”

His AI just sent him the most judgemental look that she could muster, which was pretty judgemental. If she could harm him then she probably would’ve.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was difficult to write, I ended up scrapping parts at the end of the chapter

Monday rolled around after an uneventful weekend and day.

Zayden almost slammed his locker shut and let out a long sigh.

Michelle walked past him and raised an eyebrow. “You coming to the meeting?”

A shrug.

“I dunno.” A pause. “I doubt it. I’m staying at Stark Tower for the internship and I’m getting picked up after school.”

Michelle nodded in understanding and continued down the hallway towards the library where the other members of the Decathlon team would be located right now. She paused and then glance dover her shoulder to him.

“Are you alright?”

Zayden felt a smile tug at his lips. “Do I hear concern?”

“Pfft. You wish, Parker.” Despite the harsh tone, Zayden could tell her eyes were soft. “I just don’t want my best team member to be slacking on his duties.”

“It’s only one week.” Zayden pointed out and he glanced around with a furrowed brow. “After that, it’ll be back to normal.”

“Normal is stupid.” Michelle teased lightly before walking off fully that time.

Zayden didn’t want to stand around and focus on nothing but everything. He figured that perhaps Harley and whoever was picking them up was waiting for him. That would not be a surprise.

He remembered putting a bag full of things for the week stay in his ‘room’ at the tower, the day prior. Apparently, he had taken too long and the driver was trying to hide his annoyance.

Not his fault.

Karen was being a little shit that day.

Okay.

It _was_ his fault.

Zayden walked towards the entrance of the school, hoping that he would be ignored by Flash who would most likely be hanging around Harley and asking to join him to see Tony Stark in the flesh.

“Oi, Parker!”

Zayden didn’t even try and hide his groan, body tensing slightly upon hearing Flash’s obnoxious voice. He really hated it sometimes, especially on days where things were just too loud or too bright or too strong with their scents.

He noticed Flash leaning against a car, that really didn’t seem like it was expensive but the unmistakeable logo of Stark Industries on the side of the car indicated who exactly the cars belonged to.

“You were taking too long! They were getting annoyed.” Flash smirked, obviously in glee about Zayden being shown in a bad light.

“No, we weren’t.” Harley spoke from the back seat, looking troubled as he glanced at the driver who didn’t turn to look at them.

Zayden could tell that the driver was agitated but merely shrugged. “Sorry. I had to explain to MJ that I wasn’t going to be attending any meetings this week. I lost track of time.”

The driver still didn’t look pleased but relaxed somewhat for what reason Zayden didn’t know. He shot a look at Flash who looked pissed off but quickly replaced it with one of barley concealed annoyance.

“Whatever you say, Parker.”

He stormed off and Zayden was amused at the lack of the name “Penis Parker” being thrown at his face every other day. It seemed like Flash had changed his view on him because of his view on Spider Man. Not like Flash _knew_ that Zayden was Spider Man but subconsciously he must have an idea.

Like with the rest of the Decathlon team – they probably had their suspicions but knew better than to ask.

Zayden was a master of avoiding questions.

Harley sighed and stretched out in the car as much as he could. “You excited?”

Zayden merely shrugged. “Somewhat. I don’t know how to feel about it.”

_Arguing with May yesterday definitely didn’t help my decision._

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden entered the room as Harley continued to a different floor. Obviously, Tony and Pepper wanted to talk with him for a bit. Or he just didn’t want to hang around.

Either had a strong possibility of being the case.

Zayden smelt Tina’s scent of Pineapples and tulips before she latched onto his side. His eyebrows raised silently at her and felt her pull him down slightly to match her height.

“What are you going to do about Vulture’s friend?” She hissed, keeping her voice down just in case someone overheard.

“What friend?” Zayden asked, stumped. “He isn’t in New York. He’s none of my concern for the moment.”

Tina frowned and snarled. “He is still a threat, you know. Slacking off on keeping tabs on him will be detrimental for you.”

Zayden tugged his arm out of her grip. “Tina. It’s…It’s none of my business. He hasn’t done anything. No-one even knows who this friend is. Adrien is keeping his mouth shut as well. I’m not even sure he knows who it is.”

Tina didn’t look convinced but nodded and walked off. “Fine. But I don’t want to say that I told you so. I guess you don’t need to worry about them for a while anyway.”

That made Zayden pause even though he had the same feeling on Friday night when Karen mentioned Vulture’s unknown friend. He shrugged and brushed it off.

He could focus on that issue later.

For now, he had to get through this week without wanting to jump off the nearest building.

An hour later, Zayden was going through a few of his plans that he had left to the side a while back. Flipping through the pages he noticed his design for a hoverboard.

Tapping his pen against his desk, Zayden figured it would be worth a shot. Certainly, changes had to be made to the design but he didn’t really care for that.

It was a simple design anyway.

He flipped his phone over and opened Messenger to see if MJ had plotted to kill someone. Sure enough, she was. This time it was Abe who must’ve stolen her recent book. Poor soul. He didn’t stand a chance.

 **Peter:** What are you guys discussing????

 **Cindy:** How MJ is gonna kill Abe

 **Cindy:** I don’t know I just heard her yelling at him

 **Peter:** He’s gonna die

 **Abe:** I will die doing what I love!! :D

 **Michelle:** What? Being a nuisance?

 **Abe:** No

 **Abe:** Dying

Zayden snorted to himself and saw the rest of their group chat sending laughing emojis. MJ screeched at Abe who seemed to drop of the face of the planet.

He got a notification from Karen.

**Vulture still hasn’t said anything about his friend.**

That made Zayden pause.

While it shouldn’t have been concerning, it still was.

**You don’t need to keep me updated you know.**

**He could be after you! I am programmed to protect you to the best of my abilities and that is to alert you of any changes.**

Zayden was still taken aback by how sassy and whiny she managed to sound via that message.

Or perhaps that’s because he created her and knows how she sounds when she sends these types of messages to him.

**Yeah. You’re right. Sorry, girl.**

The doors clicked open and Zayden caught the unmistakeable scent of Wakanda. He risked a glance up to see T’Challa, Nakia, Okoye, Shuri and another two Dora Milaje walking into the floor.

T’Challa looked around at the interns who had wide eyes.

“Sorry, but I can’t see Tony at the moment so I hope you don’t mind this intrusion.” T’Challa spoke, a warm smile on his face.

“We don’t mind.” One of the older inters, Jason piped up. He had managed to shake himself out of his stupor.

Zayden had seen T’Challa screw up in a fight because Nakia had called him. The news left that out coincidentally. Of course, Zayden had video records of that instance. Not that he’d ever tell him that.

Shuri gazed around, trying to hide her excitement of being surrounded by people who were intelligent and good at what they do. This concealment did come off as being blasé and sometimes even rude to a degree.

Zayden knew she meant well but because she had rarely interacted with other people her age in Wakanda, let alone in other countries, she tended to forget that her comments could come off as incredibly rude.

This was coming from _Spider Man_ who spent ninety per cent of his time irritating people with his comments.

Shuri and Zayden’s eyes met briefly before he looked away back to his paper. He knew she was still watching him curiously but prayed she would turn away eventually. He really didn’t like the attention.

His cheeks heated up.

Tina leaned towards Zayden with raised eyebrows. “How’s your crush?”

“Fuck off.” Zayden grumbled.

“Not an answer~” She sounded much too amused.

“It’s the only answer you are getting.”

“Then it’s the only one I need.”

Zayden was about to say something when there was a flicker of movement that caught his attention. He glanced to the side to see Harley look at Shuri and then him before storming out of the room.

When did he show up?

Tina let out a soft noise. “Poor Harley. It sucks having an unrequited crush.” She didn’t look at Zayden who also didn’t look back at her. “But, he’ll get over it. He has too.”

Zayden knew he wasn’t to blame but he couldn’t help but feel a little bothered.

Maybe he should keep his crush on Shuri to a minimum when Harley’s around. He doesn’t want to rub it in his face after all.

~~~~~~~~~~

The door clicked shut behind Zayden as he collapsed on the bed. The springs squeaked underneath his weight and he groaned lowly in the back of his throat.

The day was long as fuck.

He had started work on his hoverboard design after Tony had come down to talk to them about the quick inventions they have spent the past year working on. It was now to start creating them.

Zayden rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. His eyes closed as he tried to calm his racing thoughts.

Sometimes he really hated having a crush on Shuri.

He rarely saw her but when he did he freaked out.

Tina didn’t even let up on her teasing comments about Shuri. He really didn’t want any mental images that Tina was set on giving him.

He was fine before Tina’s comments plagued his mind.

He cracked an eye open.

_What was that?_

Zayden strained his neck back to focus on the noise several floors above him.

It sounded like yelling.

Forgetting his desire to rest, Zayden leaped off the bed and rushed out the room. His eyes glanced quickly around the floors before noticing the stairs.

You would be stupid to use Friday.

She’d never let him anywhere near the floors where the yelling was currently commencing.

Also, for safety reasons there were stairs in the tower. You can’t just have elevators because even Stark Industry elevators shut off in the case of a fire. Plus, Zayden thought he heard Pepper say that she didn’t want lazy workers.

Which is fair enough.

Zayden stopped on the stairwell, the voices were clearer but still not clear enough.

After a few minutes of getting up another floor of the Tower, Zayden perched on a seat and gazed up at the ceiling. He was still several floors below but he could hear them.

“I can’t believe you Stark!”

“What can’t you believe, Rogers? I want to help you.”

“How are you helping us? You are tearing us apart!”

“How? How? Tell me how I am.”

“By siding with the government.”

“Because I don’t want the governments of the world to distrust us.”

“We won’t be capable of helping people!”

“We still will be able to.”

Zayden noticed that Tony’s voice had dropped, wanting to keep his voice down this time. Unlike Steve whose voice was raising. Zayden furrowed his brows.

“What aren’t you telling us, Steve?” Clint asked this time.

“The Accords…”

“What aren’t you telling us?!” Another voice ripped through the air, Zayden briefly recognised it as Scott Lang – he and May had run into him a couple of times while shopping. “Why am I here instead of being with my daughter?”

Silence.

“Do you trust the Accords?” Steve asked this time, to the group at large. Zayden could hear everyone walking and shifting around up there.

He still couldn’t believe they were on this subject. It seems like they didn’t want to fix it up at a reasonable hour.

“Can’t they keep it down?” Zayden asked lowly.

Friday, of course, answered. “No-one should be able to hear them.”

“I can.”

“Clearly. Do you want me to tell them to keep their voices down?”

“No need.” Zayden shook his head and leaned against the wall. “I’ll just wait for them to shut up.”

“Why do you guys hate the Accords so much?” Tony spoke, sounding disbelieving and shocked.

“Because they are limiting what we can do.”

“They are ensuring that their civilians are protected.”

“We can protect them!”

“Not when we leave towns and cities half destroyed.”

Tony had lost the fight in him at the moment. Zayden could hear that.

“The people are still safe.”

“They have nowhere to live.”

Zayden shook his head and stormed off, fury prickling under his skin.

How could they act so calm and unaffected by what they were saying?! It was ridiculous. 

“We can discuss this tomorrow. Away from here.” Steve spoke, sounding agitated by Tony’s tired tone.

He was taking it the wrong way.

Taking Tony’s tiredness as him not caring.

Tony cared too much and that was his problem no matter how good it seemed.

Zayden ran straight into Tina who chuckled.

“Have you lost your powers or something?” She noticed Zayden’s expression and frowned. “What’s wrong? What were they saying?”

“Just fighting over the Accords. Nothing new.”

Tina sighed and watched as Zayden walked past her to get back to his room.

“Hey, Zay?” He paused and looked over his shoulder at her. “Be careful, will you? There are more Winter Soldiers and they don’t know this yet.”

“Are they alive?” Zayden asked.

“No.”

With that, Tina disappeared around the corner and Zayden shook his head. He walked back to his room before flopping onto his bed with a heavy sigh.

“Peter?” Friday spoke up.

“Don’t. Friday.” Zayden gritted out. “Just. Don’t. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Friday didn’t press it any further which calmed Zayden down.

He fell asleep to yelling and remembered the sound of someone screaming Richard’s name as the scent of blood surrounds him. A cry of pain resonated in his mind as Zayden stared at blood that splattered across his hands.

Zayden’s fingers dug into the blanket.

Zayden heard someone yell. “I hate you Stark! Your father created Captain America! None of his lineage should survive!”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter did not want to get written XD
> 
> Finally got it done

A few nights later, Zayden grumbled as he rolled over in bed. Trying to keep his eyes shut and hoping the noises above him would stop.

Noises?

Zayden sat up slightly, eyebrows furrowed as he gazed around the darkened room. Even though Zayden could still see everything in the room. Nothing was odd within his room, and if something _did_ get in certainly Zayden would’ve woken up.

A yell from several floors above caused Zayden to jump and snap his head towards the ceiling.

What?

Zayden slipped out of bed and rubbed the back of his eyes with a confused sound escaping his lips.

“What are they talking about?”

Friday clearly didn’t think about saying anything even though she had heard his comment.

Zayden looked up at the camera and spoke again. “Friday, what are they talking about?”

“The Accords.” Friday responded, but hesitantly – obviously not sure if she should really being saying anything.

“Why?”

Nothing.

Zayden wanted to press it further when there was a loud smashing noise. It was glass shattering. Zayden doubted that anyone else had heard it, because his ears were just that sensitive. He lunged at the window and tugged at it.

It didn’t move.

Obviously.

“Friday. Open. The. Window.” Zayden gritted out.

Friday said nothing.

“Friday!” Zayden snapped.

“I can’t let you out.” Friday explained. “No-one is allowed out.”

“A window smashed! And you’re expecting me to sit around and ignore it?” Zayden hissed, annoyance and anger bubbling up inside him.

“That is what you are meant to do.” If Friday could sound patronising then she certainly would’ve.

Zayden heard nothing above him. Even straining his ears. Nothing. Absolute silence. Figuring that they had gone somewhere else, Zayden sent a message to Karen who quickly responded.

“Friday, what do you know about Spider Man?”

Understandably, Friday didn’t say anything. Unsure really of what Zayden’s words implied. Somehow, Zayden was certain that she’d figure it out.

“Do you know who he is?” Zayden pressed, wanting to make sure that Tony had no idea of who he really was.

“No.” Friday responded. “I do not.”

“It’s me. I’m Spider Man. I want to help.” Zayden knew it was fucking risky to reveal himself to Friday who can just inform Tony of his identity and screw everything up. He’ll put in a lot of time to study and research him and realise that his first two years were inconsistent and then all the pieces would fall into place.

It was not his time to reveal who he was to Tony yet. It wasn’t the right time for his birth parents to know the truth.

Honestly. He didn’t know when that time would be. He just knew he’d know.

Friday said nothing.

“Please, let me help.” Zayden begged.

Friday finally spoke up. “Do you want me to say anything?”

“No. Keep it secret, please.”

The AI agreed, despite Zayden knowing she’d be sort of betraying her code. Except, as long as Tony doesn’t ask her for Spider Man’s identity she could keep it secret.

The window clicked open and Zayden smiled to himself before quickly changing into his suit. Easing the window open, Friday spoke up once more.

“I will edit the camera footage so no-one knows.”

“Thank you.” Zayden murmured before calling Karen who thankfully was nearby.

He leaped through the window and landed on her back silently as the robot took off in a certain direction.

“Do you know where we are going?” Karen asked.

“No…Can you get into contact with Friday?” Zayden asked back, trying to use his senses to reach out for familiar scents and presences.

His AI fell silent as she reached for the other AI but let out a humming noise before changing course and taking off towards the ocean. Odd.

Zayden pursed his lips as his eyes narrowed.

“How long have they been gone for?”

“Almost an hour.” Karen responded. “Stark rushed off not too long ago. I wasn’t informed of where everyone is.”

“Probably all together or something.” Zayden mumbled. He could suspect that there was going to be a fight breaking out.

Karen seemed to agree as she swooped lower before speaking up. “Friday has informed the German government that you are heading into their airspace to try and look out for any civilians and keep them away from the possible danger.”

Zayden nodded. That would be fine. He’d do that anyway, really. It made sense really. Friday probably knew that Tony liked Spider Man and he had no bad track records – once again, the government didn’t prevent his presence.

A loud crash rang through the silent air.

Zayden cussed loudly as Karen dove towards the airport, an angry noise ripping through her body. Zayden felt his body tense up as he ran through all possible circumstances that possibly occurred in that single moment.

Karen quickly spoke up. “No civilians are around, so no-one in any possible danger.”

“Good.” Zayden nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. No innocents were going to get involved. But why, Germany? Of all countries, _Germany_?

Zayden looked up and felt his heart plummet to the bottom of his chest.

No.

Someone was falling.

He knew who that was. The suit was too familiar.

“NO!” Zayden cried, but knew his voice wasn’t heard.

Rhodey.

Karen screeched before swooping down, her talons stretching out and just catching his body. It wasn’t enough to catch him fully, but it slowed his decent. He was still falling.

Fuck.

Zayden and Karen spun around but barely recovered when they heard Rhodey’s body slam into the ground.

Zayden landed on the ground and stopped just behind Tony who collapsed behind his best friend’s body. He looked at Karen who clicked her tongue in worry.

“He is breathing.” Zayden murmured, shock still filling his body. At least it was better than him being dead.

He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to handle witnessing the death of another uncle.

Or being able to witness to death of anyone else really – especially if they were family.

Tony sucked in a deep breath and looked at Zayden. “Spider Man…What are you doing here?”

“I was worried.” Zayden said simply. “I can get War Machine somewhere safe. And also inform any nearby medical units.”

Tony nodded mutely, Zayden not even sure if he did hear him.

Karen nudged Zayden. “Boss, I’ve alerted the emergency services and an ambulance is coming.”

“Thank you, Karen.” Zayden murmured, softly stroking Karen’s head.

She trilled and they both watched as Tony looked around and cursed to himself. A quick glanced proved why he was suddenly furious.

Steve and Bucky were nowhere to be found.

Zayden didn’t actually remember seeing them earlier. When Tony stormed off and fired up his suit to track them, Sam walked up unsure. The wings looked clipped and a little destroyed.

“Are…Are you going to stay with him?” Sam made a beckoning motion towards Rhodey. 

Zayden frowned to himself, thankful that they couldn’t see his face. “Yes.”

Sam stepped back at the cold tone the voice spoke in. Eyes widening before looking down in guilt. Zayden didn’t know why exactly but he figured that he could ask Karen what happened – she saw more of the fight than he did as he was so focused and trying to figure out who was there and for civilians and the like. 

When the ambulance arrived, Zayden climbed onto Karen’s back and decided to risk following Tony.

Karen seemed annoyed and wanted to go home but understood that Zayden probably figured something was wrong.

Even Friday was silent, she would’ve told them to return home if everyone was back in America. But, she hadn’t. So, Zayden and Karen decided to find Tony as they felt that they should.

“Where did he go?” Karen asked, following the track Friday had given them. “Why on Earth did they go to bloody _Russia?_ ”

“Perhaps they went to Germany because someone wanted them to go to Russia afterwards.” Zayden spoke – that made sense in a logical manner.

“Why?” Karen sounded annoyed.

Zayden was reminded of what Tina said earlier. About the Winter Soldiers and how they were all dead but that no-one knew. Dread pooled inside of him. He could only imagine what was waiting for him.

They reached a building and Karen landed outside of it. Neither wanted to enter the building, just in case it was trap. They wanted to be aware of the place before entering the building, if they needed to anyway.

Zayden peered through a window and watched as Tony, Steve and Bucky stood together in front of a screen. It showed the events at the UN gathering where T’Challa’s father had been killed by an explosion.

Then, the video changed and this made Zayden pause.

It was a long winding road. With a single car upon it.

When Tony spoke, Zayden realised what road it was.

The road where his grandparents had died.

This was not good. This was not good at all.

Zayden was silent as the car drove past and someone entered the frame when a tyre was shot out.

A Winter Soldier.

Bucky Barnes.

That made Zayden pull back with a silent gasp. His eyes widening and Karen looked at him – looking worried at his reaction.

“Boss…”

Zayden couldn’t speak. He knew what was coming. It was too obvious now. Zayden’s body shook as he collapsed onto the ground, not bringing himself able to watch – he didn’t want to. He wouldn’t be able to handle it at all.

He could hear his grandparents gasps and screams as they died again. He could feel his father’s anger rising but it was able to keep it down and hide it.

“Did you know?”

“No.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Rogers. Did. You. Know?”

“…Yes.”

“How long have you known?”

“Two years.”

“Two fucking years and you didn’t tell me?!”

“I was protecting him!”

“I could’ve helped him if I knew the truth!” Tony yelled and it jerked Zayden back to reality when a loud smash rang through the air.

A few seconds passed and he heard Steve tell Bucky that they had to leave. Bucky put up a fight but seemed too far shocked and stunned to continue fighting.

Zayden waited until he was certain they had gone before smashing through the window of the building. Karen was silent as she followed him to Tony’s limp – not lifeless – body.

“Dad…” Zayden whispered, body shaking slightly. Tony was unconscious at the moment so he wouldn’t even hear his slipup. Yet, Zayden didn’t care if he _had_ heard it.

Zayden’s mouth moved before he registered it. “Karen, call am emergency service. Now.”

Karen obliged and soon Zayden fell to his knees beside Tony’s head. He hoped the government wasn't pissed off that he crossed borders and would relax upon getting the message.

Zayden bit back tears horrified about the recent events. “You’ll be fine. Please...Don't leave me."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I love this chapter, definitely more of a filler but gives a bit more information on Tony and Pepper about their life without Zayden.

The beeping of the hospital heart monitor stirred Zayden from his sleep, eyes blinking awake to stare at the white and sterile room that he was situated in. There was the scent of flowers that lingered in the air but it was nothing to the usual unscented nature of hospitals.

Turning his head, Zayden saw Tony’s limp body laying in the hospital bed and his heart constricted painfully. There was the faint rise and fall of his chest, but enough to reassure Zayden that he was alright and would make out if alive.

Zayden pulled the mask back over his face. He was certain that Karen would alter the cameras if necessary.

He really didn’t want to get caught but promised to hang around Tony until Pepper or Rhodey could show up and to leave when that happened. They had been moved to the compound pretty soon after being collected, allowing Tony’s doctors to check him over but Zayden was required to stay just to be on the safe side but refused help since he actually wasn’t injured.

The door opened and Zayden was thankful that he had pulled the mask over his face. Two people entered and Zayden realised that they were both Pepper and Rhodey.

“Spider Man.” Rhodey stated as Pepper brushed past to sit beside Tony and take his hand in her own. “You are still here?”

Zayden nodded. “I decided to hang around for a bit.”

_I just hope that no-one has figured out that Peter Parker is still in his room._

Zayden began to leave the room. “I’ll be on my way now.”

Escaping from the now stifling room, the hallway was a breath of relief of fresh air to a degree. It didn’t seem like the sterility of the hospital room that he had spent about three hours in. Glancing at the time, Zayden realised that it was only 5 am.

He could still be able to get to the tower and be there in time for breakfast. Even though he was positive that they’d have a day off.

He should probably ask Karen, just in case she heard something.

Zayden paused, glancing to the side and stepped towards the shelf where some photos were situated. One had caught Zayden’s attention.

It was picture of himself as an infant with Tony and Pepper. Unless, he had a twin but knew that was not the case.

Tony was holding Zayden who was laughing and Pepper leaned away from her boys but was also laughing at the scene beside her.

He heard wheels roll in, Rhodey’s legs weren’t permanently damaged but enough for the time being to be restricted to a wheel chair until he could find a way to use crutches or a leg strap. Whichever one came first really.

“He was their pride and joy.” Rhodey’s voice resonated from beside him but Zayden didn’t even bother flinching and pulling away from him.

“Who? The infant?” Zayden questioned, head tilted to the side despite his face betrayed his confusion – as it was blank and calm.

“Yeah.” Rhodey picked the picture up and smiled sadly. “No-one is meant to know he exists though. Pepper and Tony have been adamant that they don’t want to world to know about their son. He’s their secret and the only thing about their private lives that people don’t know.”

Zayden was surprised about that. While he already knew it – to hear from a primary source that Tony and Pepper wanted him to remain a secret to keep him out of sight and out of mind from the media for as long as possible. Without him in their lives as their son has helped with keeping that secret safe.

“I’m pretty good at keeping secrets. No-one knows my real identity, after all.” 

Don’t look suspicious. Don’t get suspicious. Don’t look suspicious. Don’t get suspicious. Don’t act suspicious. Don’t act suspicious.

Rhodey laughed. “I figured that, Spidey.”

The atmosphere was not happy for long before it turned darker.

“What was his name?”

“Zayden…Pepper and Tony wanted a different and unique name.”

“Heh…It is…Interesting.”

“Yeah, but it was interesting in a pleasant way.”

“What happened to Zayden?”

It was his history. He wouldn’t care all that much if he wasn’t informed from a third party but it could be enough to calm his racing thoughts whenever he thought about it too long.

Rhodey was silent and unease filled the air around them.

Okay. He could deal without knowing the truth for a little while longer.

“If it’s uncomfortable talking about I won’t press it. It’s a sensitive topic, I get it. I’m just curious.” Zayden turned his head away, feeling guilty about even bringing it up.

Rhodey was still silent before nodding slowly and then shook his head before dragging his hand down his face.

“It’s not that.” Rhodey said catching Zayden’s attention. “It’s true that it’s a sensitive topic but that’s not why I can’t really talk about it.”

Zayden hoped his curiosity got through and he guessed it did because Rhodey looked determined to continue talking.

“I don’t know the story. I really don’t. I was never here and neither of Tony and Pepper are fully knowledgeable of the entire story of what happened.” Rhodey confessed. “We can only assume because JARVIS was down that day because we were moving from the building to another location.”

“Don’t ask why we kept Zayden in that old building. It was stupid and a mistake on our part.” Rhodey grumbled, looking stressed as he ran his hands through his hair.

“No…I said I shouldn’t have asked.” Zayden admitted, trying to find his voice but it was so soft. Ridiculously soft. “It was not my place to ask anything, especially since it is such a sensitive topic.”

Zayden turned on his heel and began to walk away. He got the feeling that Rhodey wanted to speak up but chose not to. That was no real issue. Zayden didn’t care much for that – he did but he didn’t want to push for anything.

He briefly remembered how he didn’t want to push about something – especially since he really should have.

The moment when the Wakandan Royal Family was in an area with active bombs, yet Shuri refused to sit idly by. Look, she might be a persistent person and strong in her own ways, but she wasn’t capable of handling a bomb explosion. No matter what she said or claimed.

Zayden was in the area to assist in any help to get the civilians out of the way. One of those civilians was Shuri who refused to back off.

He was too late to get there, but thankfully the Vibranium that Shuri was wearing took the blunt of the bomb explosion. He was able to get her back to safety despite the issues around it because her clothes had taken a beating.

Shuri had been thankful for him giving her his jacket.

Actually…

He never got his jacket back.

Not like he’d ever ask for it back, nor tell Shuri that she looks better in it than he ever did.

The endless teasing that he’d receive from his friends if they found out would be relentless. Look, he can deal with a lot of teasing but he doubted he’d handle _that_ embarrassment.

“Wait.” Zayden stopped as he spoke over his shoulder, knowing that Rhodey hadn’t gone back into the hospital room. “Did Tony and Pepper ever look for their son?”

He wasn’t expecting a response, so he was surprised when Rhodey did speak. “They did.”

“They never found him?”

“They knew who should’ve had him but they got a report that he had…Been lost.” Rhodey said and Zayden knew he was going to say, ‘died’. It was too obvious.

Rhodey sounded distant, as though lost in thought. “They never gave up hope, and even now they hope to find him once more. They just need proper evidence that their son had died for them to give up. They never received that proper evidence.”

“Understandable.” Zayden murmured before nodding. “Thanks…I know it would be hard for you to talk about. You never needed to, you know.”

“I know. I guess…You’re trustworthy.” Rhodey admitted. “Goodbye, Spidey.”

“So long, War Machine.” Zayden stated before slipping down another hall to leave through a nearby window. Karen was waiting for him outside anyway.

Zayden felt a stab of guilt drive through his heart.

Sure, he felt guilty for not revealing who he was but he was worried that they’d force themselves into his life upon realising it. He didn’t not want them in his life but wanted them to be there out of their own consideration and not because they thought it was their right.

A choked sob threatened to rip out of his throat but he shook his head to keep it at bay. He couldn’t cry, unless he could play it off as a restless night sleep to everyone else. That wouldn’t work. It would be too obvious it was from crying.

Karen chirped as Zayden leaped onto her back and took flight. “What’s wrong?”

“I just asked Rhodey about what happened after I was taken.” Zayden admitted, there was no use in lying to Karen or even trying to keep it quiet. She always got the answer she needed to hear.

“You didn’t tell him, did you?”

“No. I didn’t.” Zayden muttered. “I’m not sure if I should’ve or not.”

Karen snarled as best her ability could. “No! None of you are even in the right mind set to discuss and open that can of worms.”

Zayden knew she was right and sighed. “I know that, girl.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony watched as Rhodey returned to the room, having woken up a while ago and just spoke softly with Pepper about what had happened and to ensure his memory was fine.

“Rhodey…Was that Spider Man?”

His best friend nodded. “Yeah. He brought you in and was keeping an eye on you for us.”

Tony let out a breath. He wished that the vigilante had stayed until he awoke so he could properly thank him. He could always do it next time they met, but he had no idea when that would be exactly considering his bed rest for the next two days.

“Why did he follow me?” Tony asked, voice soft and breathy from his damaged lungs and chest.

“Worry.” Rhodey said simply as he stared at Tony’s heart monitor. “We figured he was worried and followed you from a bad and uneasy vibe he was getting.”

Tony hummed and nodded, closing his eyes as he felt the pull of sleep tugging at his body.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took waaaaay tooooooo long to write

Tony walked out of the bathroom and paused when he saw Pepper sitting in bed, her gaze focused on the TV on the other side of the room. Glancing towards it, Tony realised that it was a NEWS report.

A quick glance proved to Tony that it was of a burning building and there was a flicker of red and blue within the picture that darted into the building.

Spider Man.

“When…When did this report start?” Tony ask as he start beside Pepper who briefly flickered her gaze towards him before turning back to the TV with a shrug.

“It isn’t live, but apparently everyone was able to get out safely. Spider Man helped get the children and disabled out of the building as they found it more difficult to navigate the burning floors.” Pepper spoke and sighed, leaning against the pillows.

Tony hummed as he watched the report as it wrapped up.

The vigilante was someone of pure mystery. Fully capable of heading into a more villainous route, he has stuck to assisting those who need his help and keeping the crime rate down in New York without using force.

There was just something about him that made Tony know that he knew who was underneath the mask. With how he spoke to the guy, he figured he was young but the actual age was unknown.

Even though he was fully capable on figuring out who it was, Tony knew better than to do so especially without Spider Man’s trust and permission. They were close, and Tony was always willing to let Spider Man assist him whenever he needed the extra help – building up a mutual trust between the pair.

When the NEWS report ended, Tony turned the TV off and settled back into the bed. Pepper had turned back to a book that she was reading and hardly had time to read. Tony sighed heavily as he stared up at the ceiling.

“Do you think Spider Man is alright?” Tony asked randomly, making Pepper almost jump in shock.

Pepper blinked and placed the book down. “I believe so. He’s been through worse.”

Tony made a face. While he was aware of that fact, it did not mean that he enjoyed hearing that fact being spoken out loud. Spider Man sounded young but extremely mature.

Pepper rested her hand on Tony’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about him. Spider Man isn’t one to get knocked down and stay down. Almost like you in that regard.”

“Don’t remind me.” Tony grumbled as he furrowed his brows. “I look at Spider Man and I see a better version of myself. I want to help him, but I can only watch from the sidelines.”

Pepper rested her hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. Perhaps one day you can help him work on and hone his skills.”

“I hope so.” Tony mumbled as he closed his eyes and rolled over to face Pepper.

The pair fell asleep in their bed, the blankets pooling around them as their fingers intertwined together.

~~~~~~~~~~

Michelle frowned as she rested her elbows on her knees as the NEWS report highlighted the events around the burning building. Ned rested on the floor by her bed and Cindy, Sally and Abe fussing over their school notes.

Sally looked back and raised her eyebrows. “What does it say?”

“They don’t know what happened to Spider Man after the building’s fire was extinguished.” Michelle stated and turned back to the book beside her.

“It’s Spider Man.” Abe stated loudly. “He would be fine.”

Ned and Michelle exchanged looks and Ned nodded briefly at her.

Michelle shrugged and opened the book. “Whatever. Anyway, we need to practise so we can throw down Peter when he returns.”

Cindy rolled her eyes at Michelle’s words. “If you say so. When do we ever do any study?”

“If all of us were here we’d just get ice cream.” Abe pointed out and grinned when Michelle tried to shoot him a warning look.

Ned snickered and pursed his lips when Michelle groaned loudly at them.

“Why won’t you guys just listen?”

“We do listen.” Sally stated simply.

Cindy flopped down on the bed beside Michelle. “It’s just that your words are contradictory.”

Ned nodded. “Yeah. Come on, MJ. You love us.”

Michelle just grumbled. “I hate all of you.”

“Whatever you say.”

~~~~~~~~~

Tina drummed her fingers along her desk as she stared at the NEWS report and its repeating claims as it played on loop.

Her eyes narrowed out of annoyance and irritation at Zayden’s actions.

“I don’t mind him assisting in protecting people. I like that he does.” Tina hissed under her breath. “But, why doesn’t he realise that his life is too valuable.”

She groaned and rubbed her eyes, noticing the time. They would be having to leave their rooms soon.

“The Cosmic Stones need all the protectors that they can get.”

~~~~~~~~~

Zayden groaned as he rolled over in bed, hissing quietly as the bed sheets brushed against the burn marks on his skin that had yet to heal properly.

That worried him.

Not enough to actually make him check the burns, but worried enough to figure he would have to cover them up to keep the burns a secret.

His laptop lit up with the message of an incoming Facebook call.

Zayden clicked accept to see Ned and Michelle on their own screens.

“Hello, cocksuckers!” Michelle spoke loudly and Ned whined and clutched his heart.

“That was one time, MJ. You promised you’d never tell.”

Zayden pushed himself up onto his forearms while remaining on his stomach. “Hey guys.”

“Sup, Parker.” Michelle grinned then raised an eyebrow. “You look like shit.”

“Thanks, MJ. You know how to make people feel great about themselves.”

“I do try.” Michelle smirked and Zayden rolled his eyes. “Anyway…”

Ned leaned forward with a sparkle in his eyes. “MJ wants help with Cindy.”

Michelle narrowed her eyes. “I do not.”

Zayden felt his lips twitch upwards into a smirk. “Want help with any pick-up lines?”

“Fuck no.” Michelle snapped. “You guys may be smart but when it comes to pick-up lines, the two of you are the last people I’d ask for help.”

“Shame. You could use some really cheesy ones on her. She may like ‘em.” Zayden pointed out.

Michelle raised an eyebrow and then smirked herself. “So, is that why you and Princess Shuri are together?”

Zayden reeled back and spluttered in indignation. “That…That is not what we are talking about?!”

“I dunno, man.” Ned said. “MJ does make a good point.”

“It is not the same thing!” Zayden cried out.

Michelle laughed. “Yeah, it is different. I talk with Cindy and you don’t talk with the Princess.”

Zayden grumbled and moved to end the call. “Goodbye.”

“No!” Ned wailed. “Don’t leave me with her! She’ll kill me.”

Michelle grinned brightly, it slightly unnerved Zayden. “Well. I needed some help with my ritual sacrifice to Cthulhu.”

“No!” Ned cried. “Any other God!”

“Why Cthulhu?” Zayden asked, curious about Michelle’s reasoning.

She shrugged. “Why not Cthulhu?”

“I’d rather be given over to Satan than Cthulhu.” Ned muttered.

“Well, we can’t have you having fun and being excited about who you are being given over to.” Michelle stated. “So, it’s Cthulhu or nothing.”

Ned just grumbled but Zayden paused when he heard footsteps outside his room.

Zayden yelped when he realised it was Tony Stark. He dove towards his suit that had been resting on his bed on the other side of his laptop. He grabbed it and tossed it under his bed, praying that Tony wouldn’t notice the red material from the doorway. Even though that wasn’t likely to happen.

“What-?” Ned and Michelle sounded confused as Zayden actions but then there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.” Zayden called as he moved back into sight of his laptop and pointedly ignored his best friends.

Tony Stark opened the door and poked his head in. He looked much better than he did last time Zayden had seen him. It might’ve only been two days ago but it was enough for Tony to cover as much of the wounds as possible.

“Good morning, Mr Parker.” Tony spoke and looked at the laptop. “Hello, Peter’s friends.”

Ned and Michelle were quiet but said their own greetings.

Zayden turned back to his laptop. “Look, guys…I’ve got to go.”

“Bye.” Michelle spoke up.

“See ya, dude.” Ned nodded before Zayden hung up the call.

Tony’s gaze focused on Zayden’s arms. “What happened to your arms?”

Zayden paused and glanced at Tony and then at his arms. The burns had faded slightly but still not enough. He really needed to seek heat-proof or resistance materials. That suit needed to be upgraded so much.

“Um…I didn’t realise I had the hot water up so high.” Zayden spoke evenly as he stood up and made sure he was fully dressed.

Tony didn’t look as though he believed him but decided to not push for an answer and tilted his head. “Come on, breakfast is ready. Don’t want anyone missing it.”

Zayden felt hunger gnaw inside him and quickly stumbled after Tony who looked as though he was slightly laughing at him. He made a face and then Tony just shook his head.

“What are you working on?” Tony asked and at Zayden’s perplexed expression he clarified. “The project? I’m interested to know what you have in mind.”

“Oh.” Zayden exclaimed. “A hoverboard actually. I’ve had the plans for a while and I can actually work on it.”

“Is that so?” Tony looked interested. “How far are you into it?”

Zayden shrugged. “The base is done, it’s just the finer details with the connections that I’m working on.”

“Sounds like it is almost done.” Tony sounded proud and impressed.

“Possibly so.” Zayden hummed. “I am surprised I haven’t scrapped the plan and restarted.”

“Can’t make your mind up?” Tony asked once they reached the elevator.

Zayden nodded and they both heard a yell as Harley skidded around a corner and leaped into the elevator just before the doors closed.

Zayden raised his eyebrows. “That was risky.”

“No, it wasn’t. Friday wouldn’t have let the doors close on me.” Harley huffed and blew his hair out of his face. “She isn’t mean.”

“Eh, I have my own issues with her.” Zayden said simply.

The AI hissed in the elevator before Tony could ask why. “There are no issues. You just don’t understand ‘no’.”

“I do too.” Zayden snorted.

Friday grumbled but said nothing else. She reminded him of Karen in that moment and he almost said so but remembered that Harley and Tony only knew Karen as Spider Man’s AI.

Harley nudged Zayden slightly. “I heard you were doing a hoverboard.”

“Yeah.” Zayden stressed the word out. “What about you?”

“Oh.” Harley blushed slightly. “I’m not doing one. It’s a bit unfair since I have a lot of access to almost everywhere in the tower and labs.”

“Fair enough.” Zayden nodded and noticed Tony’s expression turning thoughtful.

_Please don’t be what I think it is._

When the elevator opened, Tony stopped them from entering the kitchen. “I have a question for you both.”

“Umm, okay?” Harley and Zayden shared a look even though Zayden desperately wanted to slip away and hoped that Friday would just take him to the top so he could jump off the roof.

“Peter. You said you were finding the connections difficult?” Tonya sked, raising an eyebrow at the young male.

“Um…Yeah.” Zayden nodded but spoke before Tony could continue. “However, I think I have it.”

“You don’t want any assistance?” Tony asked.

Zayden refused to look at either as he slipped past them with the plan of just getting some food and _then_ filling himself off the roof.

Tina stood beside him as he grabbed a few pieces of food. “You are an idiot.”

“Thanks.”

“I mean it.”

“I know you do.” Zayden looked at Tina who just grumbled at him.

“I am trying to help you.” Tina tilted her chin and eyebrows furrowed.

“What do you want to tell me?” Zayden asked, turning to fully face her.

She leaned close to him and hissed quietly. “Stop being an asshole to Harley and don’t give up.”

“What?” Zayden leaned back in confusion. “Okay, the first part I understand but…”

“You’ll understand.” Tina shrugged.

Zayden could just watch in confusion but shook his head as Harley and Tony walked in. he would focus on that later.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I haven't focused too much on Zayden and Harley AND Zayden and Shuri's relationship enough in this rewrite but it will come into play a little while later
> 
> So have some more Shuri/Peter (Zayden) interactions

Zayden rubbed his eyes as he stared at the connections that were still not making any sense to him. The solution seemed so obvious but his mind was running a mile a minute and leaving his thoughts jumbled.

He propped his chin on his hand and drummed his fingers across the table. Despite the irritating sensation it sent through his mind, Zayden refused to stop it. It was keeping his mind focused on something other than the prototype that really didn’t want to work with him.

“Peter.” Zayden looked up and noticed that Tony was walking towards him with a determined and focused expression.

“Hello, Mr Stark.” Zayden sat up fully.

“Can I ask you a question?” Tony asked stopping in front of the table Zayden was seated at that had all of his sketches and his current prototype on the side.

“Uh, sure.” Zayden knew where he was going with the question but decided to listen regardless.

“I know you don’t like Princess Shuri and Harley.”

Zayden held in a snort but just muttered. “I don’t not like them.”

Tony looked surprised at this and sighed. “However, I want them to assist you. Or at least give them the opportunity. The other interns are older than the three of you so I decided that it wouldn’t be that bad.”

“What do the other interns say?” Zayden asked, not wanting to accept if he didn’t have to.

“They do not mind the opportunity of you becoming closer and more welcoming to them.” Tony answered and raised his eyebrows. “Sorry, if we suspected that you didn’t like them.”

Zayden sighed. “Okay…I guess I wasn’t the nicest person.”

“No, you definitely weren’t.” Tony agreed.

Zayden felt his shoulders slump before taking a deep breath and looking up at Tony. “Is that all you want me to do?”

“Yes.”

Zayden ran through the idea but remembered Tina’s words two hours prior. To not be an asshole.

“Alright. I’ll give it a shot.” Zayden agreed and noticed Tony smile in relief before covering it up but not fast enough.

Zayden saw it clear as day.

Tony waved his hand as a gesture for Zayden to follow him. Zayden wanted to make it difficult but knew that it was a stupid plan and idea.

Tony was trying his best and Zayden doesn’t have to make his life even more difficult. What happened with the Avengers was obviously something Tony wanted to push to the back of his mind as much as possible.

Zayden pushed himself up and trailed after Tony and noticed Shuri and Harley sitting together and felt something stir in his gut before squashing it. This was no time to get jealous.

Plus, he’d been rude to Shuri.

Why would she like someone like him?

Zayden scuffed at the floor. That was just the plain truth, he couldn’t get angry at his past actions but he guessed he could make up for it.

It would take a little while to prove that but he could definitely try.

“Harley, Princess.” Tony called and it caught their attention, distracting them from their video game. “I spoke with Peter here about his design on a hoverboard and he has agreed that you guys can help him if you still want to do something.”

“He really agreed?” Shuri asked.

“I am right here, you know.” Zayden muttered to himself but everyone heard it so it wasn’t even that quiet.

“Sorry, Peter.” Harley said and then looked mildly worried. “You aren’t being forced to do this?”

Zayden looked over his shoulder where they had come from. “I wouldn’t mind some extra pair of eyes to look over it.”

Harley looked bright. “So…We can actually mess around with it?”

“Well…Yeah.” Zayden said, not sounding fully sure and he knew that he wasn’t. He liked his prototype the way it was and just needed to be looked over for the connections. “I may recreate it.”

Shuri spoke up in that moment. “You don’t sound sure.”

“Well…I figured you’d like to recreate it.” Zayden said without even being aware of his words.

He recoiled back when he realised what the words were.

“Peter.” Tony said, one simple word sent fear down Zayden’s spine.

Zayden muttered. “I’m sorry.” He turned on his heel and walked down the hallway to the elevator.

Friday opened the doors and when the doors shut behind him her voice rang through the space.

“Where do you want to go?”

“Anywhere. I just need to think this through.” Zayden admitted.

Friday made no more comments but soon Zayden found himself on a floor that he never remembered ever being on. The scent of the floor made it clear that very few people ever stepped on this floor.

Zayden didn’t even bother asking Friday about what floor he was on. It was dark and quiet. A perfect spot for him to reside as he rested against the wall and slipped to the ground with a long and heavy sigh.

What was he going to do?

Well, he could do a lot but he needed to figure out what he could do immediately.

“Peter, Shuri is looking for you.” Friday spoke breaking the silence.

Well. _That_ was a surprise.

“You can tell her where I am.” Zayden said. “I guess I need to fix or make amend with her first and foremost…She’s rarely around New York and difficult to get a hold of for that reason.”

The final part was more of a ramble because he figured that Friday wouldn’t really care that much about him and his thoughts that were too jumbled and couldn’t be easily organised.

He closed his eyes and rested his head against the wall, the coolness of the metal flooded him. Zayden almost felt as though sleep was tugging at the back of his mind.

“Peter?” Shuri’s voice echoed down the hallway and Zayden turned his head to see her looking around.

He frowned, brows furrowing but then it clicked in his mind. It was dark and Shuri was unable to see him clearly since he wasn’t in the most visible spot in the first place.

“Peter? Friday said you were here.” She sounded a little concerned and Zayden sighed and spoke up deciding to not hate her.

Not like he did.

He didn’t hate her and his friends would claim that he sounded disinterested because he was scared to take the plunge into a possible relationship.

That was true but he didn’t really want to admit that.

“Over here.” He called and noticed that Shuri spun around instantly to look in his direction.

While he could see her clearly, obviously she was still finding it difficult. She walked over regardless, trusting that Zayden hadn’t led her astray. Like he would. Zayden might’ve been a bit of an asshole – that he wasn’t going to deny – but he wasn’t that much of an asshole by leading her around in the dark when she couldn’t see or make out anything in an unknown environment.

She sat down opposite him and he could tell her vision had improved and settled on Zayden’s expression.

Zayden broke the silence before she could speak. “I’m sorry.”

“About what?”

“Don’t play dumb.” Zayden muttered. “You know exactly what I am apologising for.”

Shuri leaned back and folded her arms. “I want you to say it. It isn’t a proper apology.”

Zayden’s lips twitched upwards but his expression soured. “You’re right. I have no right to apologise without explanation. I’m sorry for how I’ve treated you, you’re a princess and I’ve been treating you terribly.”

If there was one thing Zayden garnered from his father is that lack of knowing how to properly explain himself to people. AIs were easier to deal with.

Shuri seemed to contemplate his apology before sighing. “I guess I should apologise as well.”

“Why? You never treated me like shit-“

Shuri broke out into a laugh and shook her head, before her face grew soft. “Do you really not have that much self-confidence? That you really don’t think I have been rude to you?”

Zayden shrugged. “Dunno, considering everything I feel like you have the right to do so.”

“Yeah? And? I was the one who acted as though all your technology was primitive.”

“Vibranium is more advanced than anything we have.”

“But we are the only ones with Vibranium and you’ve done so much without it.” Shuri argued.

Zayden didn’t really believe so. “I insulted your reliance on Vibranium in our first meeting. Or are you forgetting that meeting?”

Shuri looked as though she wanted to shake him out of these thoughts. “I am not forgetting that, but…You treated me like I was just a normal teenager.”

“You’re not a normal teenager.” Neither was Zayden but whatever, no one needed to know that.

“That’s the point!” Shuri exclaimed and it made Zayden jump back in shock out. “I wasn’t used to it and I didn’t mind it.”

“Why?” Zayden sounded curious. This was the most he’s ever spoken with Shuri – the insults they shared about each other’s work was the pinnacle of their conversations.

Shuri fell silent and Zayden could feel the embarrassment rolling off of her but made no notion of it. Wanting to hear what she said because he was just curious.

“As royalty I never really interacted with anyone my age.” Shuri admitted quietly. “Everyone just wanted to be my friend because I am a princess, and with the Dora Milaje watching my every move outside of the palace really made me hesitant in befriending anyone. I was raised by adults to be an adult despite my age.”

Zayden could understand that. Shuri always sounded more mature and everyone tended to gloss over her age when it comes to decisions and she had a lot thrusted upon her shoulders even at such a young age.

One could say Zayden did too, but Zayden chose to become Spider Man. That was not a decision placed upon him.

“I ruined it didn’t I?” Zayden murmured. When Shuri looked perplexed he explained. “I ruined any chance of a friendship from our first meeting.”

“I think we both did.” Shuri replied, stretching out and closed her eyes and let out a few breaths.

Zayden copied her, deciding that the silence was good enough for now.

Shuri spoke up before the silence could get too much for them both. “You know…We can try it.”

Zayden hummed in confusion, hoping that Shuri would get the hint.

She was the smartest person in the world, of course she got the hint.

“We can try and be friends again.”

“I…” Zayden blinked his eyes open. “I wouldn’t mind that.” He sucked in a breath and felt determination fill him. “I will also be nicer to Harley…I hate being such an asshole to someone who doesn’t deserve such treatment.”

Shuri smiled, looking as though she was pleased by her words. “Really?”

Zayden nodded. “Yeah. I didn’t want to get my hopes up of us being friends, but now that there is the opportunity of it occurring I don’t want to let go of it.”

Shuri looked relieved and her smile was soft. Zayden felt his heart flip and his squashed it because he really didn’t want it to rear its head.

Those feelings had no right to show up now. Not when their relationship was just beginning to improve.

~~~~~~~~~

Shuri and Zayden walked out of the elevator and she nudged him slightly. Zayden raised an eyebrow at her as they made their way towards Tony and Harley who were talking between each other.

“How is the hoverboard coming along?” Shuri asked, curious.

Zayden shrugged. “Well…It’s being difficult.”

Shuri hummed. “How much help do you actually need?”

“Not much.” Zayden admitted. “Just need an extra pair of eyes to look at the connections.”

Shuri looked excited so Zayden spoke again.

“But, no Vibranium.”

“I can work with that.”

“You sure? It’s not too primitive for you?”

“You aren’t going to let me forget that are you?” Shuri asked, sounding more annoyed and upset than she actually was – Zayden’s enhanced senses were a blessing in that sense.

“You’re used to Vibranium and not to our technology.” Zayden shrugged. “So, you may find it not to your liking.”

Shuri pursed her lips and frowned at the ground. “Look, I said I was sorry, okay?”

“No.” Zayden shook his head, guilt seeping through his body. “I should really keep my mouth shut.”

The princess stopped and it caused Zayden to look back at her in confusion, eyebrow raised.

“You don’t need to. I forget that I can’t go around with my usual words and comments.” She started walking again. “Even Harley treats me as royalty and you are the only person who sees past that.”

Zayden hummed and nodded. “Yeah, I can see why you act the way you do. I guess our conversation earlier has helped.”

Shuri snickered. “Who knew talking about things could help with relationships. It’s almost as though it is part of a relationship.”

He stared at the princess who laughed at her words. His lips twitched upwards in amusement and let out a soft laugh of his own.

Who knew indeed.

Tony and Harley looked behind them at their laughs. Mixed expressions of shock and surprise on both of their faces before Tony’s face turned to one of relaxation.

Well, Tony seemed pleased that Zayden and Shuri were actually interacting without insulting each other.

Well, everyone would certainly be surprised.

“I wasn’t expecting you two to come out talking like old friends.” Tony stated simply.

Zayden’s lips twitched and looked at Shuri. “Well, anything can happen I guess.”

Harley looked a little concerned and his gaze flickered down to the ground and Shuri and Zayden both noticed this action. Guilt and unease ate at Zayden’s chest, and he knew full well that he had to try and make amends with Harley as well.

Zayden figured that perhaps that would give him a better sense of calmness and relief.

He looked at Harley and piped up. “Harley? You want to help?”

He looked startled, surprised that Zayden would ask him for help – especially since it was clear that Shuri would be helping as well.

“No, not really.” Harley shook his head. “I have a lot of school work to finish.”

“Alright.” Zayden nodded, understanding that sentiment.

Shuri seemed okay with it as well. “We’ll work on the hoverboard near by just in case you finish and want to assist in the completion of it.”

Harley smiled. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden and Shuri both yelped as sparks shot up into the air in front of them. The connections had sparked and short circuited, almost electrocuting Shuri and Zayden.

Harley looked up, eyes wide. “What were you two doing?”

“Miscalculation.” Zayden chuckled and Shuri huffed in mild annoyance.

“How did we fuck that up so badly?”

Harley turned back to his work. “Perhaps you guys just need a break from it.”

Shuri sighed heavily. “But, we are almost done.”

Zayden groaned. “Nah, let’s take a break.”

Shuri opened her mouth to argue but soon there was the announcement that there was dinner. She decided that eating was more important than work – as Harley and Zayden were already making their way towards the dining room.

“Hey, princess?” Shuri looked up and noticed Zayden looking back at her.

“What is it?” Shuri asked, raising her chin.

“Thanks for the help.” Zayden smiled before he grinned wickedly at her. “I never knew you could work so well with primitive technology.”

Shuri paused and then hissed as Zayden laughed. “I will destroy your work, I swear to Bast, Parker!”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guess who is back! Back again!
> 
> It should be easy to tell when you read the chapter :D
> 
> I missed writing Infinity so much guys, the Cosmic Entities are so interesting to get a grasp on.

The wind howled as Zayden swung through the buildings of New York City. He couldn’t feel the wind through his hair and honestly, he longed for that sensation. He’d felt it once before and decided to not do it again – people noticed and tried to figure out who he was when that happened.

You live and learn. Zayden hummed a song to himself and noticed a bare rooftop not too far away from where he was currently.

Well, he might as well get a good vantage point to overlook the city.

His feet landed perfectly on one of the spires on top of the roof before jumping down to land on the roof. His suit ruffled in the wind and his eyes narrowed as he tried to focus on the different sounds that flooded the air.

New York never slept at all and Zayden had gotten so used to the sounds that he would miss the ever-present sounds. From what he gathered from Shuri and Harley, their own homes were quiet in comparison to the ever-bustling city that Zayden had been used to his entire life.

Zayden pauses as he felt a disturbance in the air around him, his eyes narrowing slightly as his body shifts to make an easy getaway if he needed to.

Whatever or whoever it was didn’t seem to be a threat and he let his body relax to a degree.

Zayden glanced over his shoulder to see a figure that he recognised when he spotted them at his high school so many days ago now.

The figure met his gaze, their eyes matched those of galaxies. “You are not as scared as you should be.”

Zayden pulled the mask off of his face and lifted his head slightly. “I know this, but you don’t seem like a threat.”

“You would take back those words if you knew who I am.”

“Who are you then?” Zayden asked, turning around to look at the figure with an interested expression.

“Do you want to know the truth?” The figure asked, sounding intrigue that Zayden would be curious about who they really were.

Zayden blinked, perplexed that the figure would even consider that Zayden wasn’t curious about who they are.

“Because you are alluding to who you are but I have literally no idea as to who you are.”

The figure hummed, chuckling to themselves. “Very well, but someone so smart you’d have an idea.”

“You’re not human.”

“Astute observation, Zayden James Stark.” The figure looked and sounded amused. “What else can you tell?”

“You are more powerful than anything I’ve ever experienced before.” Zayden added. “Considering I’ve met Vision and the Mind Stone.”

He paused, eyes narrowing and brows furrowing. “Wait…Your aura…”

“Is older than the Mind Stone?” The figure asked. Zayden nodded and the figure added on. “Then you are correct.”

“Who are you then?”

“Infinity.”

“Infinity?” Zayden asked, leaning back and making a face. “Seriously? Why Infinity of all names?”

Infinity sniffed, looking a little irritated at the diss towards their name. “I am Infinity, the personification of Life itself – and before you ask I take on the appearance and gender of female because most people tend to push Life towards femininity.”

Infinity then mumbled under her breath. “Even though Death also takes on the appearance as a female and that is most likely because she is just a troll.”

Zayden raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

“Don’t mind me. I am just rambling. “ Infinity said and then walked towards him. “However, I have come here for something else and not about who I am nor about my own family.”

Zayden looked unsure and turned back to the city scape in front of him.

“You want to know about my family? You are all knowing, so shouldn’t you know what is going on?” Zayden gritted out.

Infinity walked towards him and placed her hand next to where Zayden was perched. “I want to know why you haven’t done anything to improve your relationship with your parents.”

“My relationship with them is fine.”

“No, it isn’t.” Infinity argued. “How could you claim that your relationship with them is fine if they…”

“Because, they don’t know I am their son!” Zayden snapped. “Our relationship is what they expect it to be considering everything. I can want more but I know I can’t do anything because they will be curious.”

Infinity looked upset. “Is that really a problem?”

“Yes.” Zayden admitted, his voice growing soft.

“How?”

“Because they won’t believe me. They may even leave me if they find out the truth.”

Infinity just blinked.

“You know that won’t ever happened.”

“How do you know that won’t?!” Zayden cried, feeling tears pricking at the back of his eyes. “They won’t even know themselves! They’ll just feel betrayed that they weren’t told the truth from the beginning.”

Infinity raised her hands and sighed and looked out across New York as well. “If that is truly how you view this relationship with your parents, Zayden?”

Zayden shrugged, and wiped the tears away. “It’s the only way I can view it without feeling longing.”

“Yet you still do.”

“Of course, I fucking do!” Zayden snarled at Infinity who pulled back in surprise at his tone.

Infinity’s expression grew soft. “Zayden…”

“Don’t ‘Zayden’ me.” Zayden growled, eyes narrowing as his gaze focused on the cars and trucks driving down below them. The sound resonating up to his ears and calming him down.

“I am not here to tell you what to do.” Infinity spoke. “I just want to know when you are planning on telling them. This isn’t something you can keep secret forever.”

 _Watch me._ Zayden thought but sighed to himself. He knew Infinity was right. Secrets always had a habit of getting out no matter how much people tried to keep them hidden.

“Is there another reason why you aren’t telling them?”

Zayden looked down at his hands and nodded weakly. “I…I don’t want to tell them because I am worried that they will leave me without thinking about it.”

“I doubt that they would. They’ll be hurt, certainly, but I know that they won’t ever leave you.”

He didn’t turn to look at Infinity but she sighed at him and stepped backwards.

“I hope you know what you are doing, Zayden.”

“I really don’t know.” Zayden admitted quietly. “I am just going through life as it comes without thinking too hard about it.”

“That is not the smartest choice.” Infinity pointed out as she began to fade away. “However, I don’t doubt that you know what you are doing.”

Zayden turned his head to watch as Infinity does fade away and he sighed to himself.

Zayden pulled his mask back on and jumped off the roof to catch himself on one of his webs. He swung himself back to Stark Tower.

~~~~~~~~~

A day later, Zayden had left the Queens apartment complex and ran his hand down his face with a sigh.

Man, he was so tired.

The previous day he and Shuri had finished up with the hoverboard and attempted to test it out. Except it had gone almost horribly if Tony hadn’t realised what they were doing.

Both were strictly forbidden from messing around with the hoverboard despite their complaints about it. They didn’t destroy anything but Tony was adamant on sticking to what he had set forth.

Harley had just laughed at them.

His hair had mysteriously gained a pink tint to it and if Shuri and Zayden were to blame they weren’t saying anything.

The other interns laughed and Tony just groaned at them. Harley warned Shuri and Zayden that they would regret what they did – even though neither of them really took him seriously.

Zayden rested his head against the wall outside the complex and closed his eyes tightly.

“Peter!” Zayden turned his head and let his eyes flutter open to see Ned hurrying up to him with an excited expression.

“Hey, Ned.” Zayden forced a smile. “What’s up?”

“There is a new movie that came out yesterday. Wanna watch it?” Ned asked, almost bouncing on his feet.

Zayden paused before smiling. “Sure.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden and Ned walked out of the cinema both of them chatting loudly and excitedly over the movie. The soundtrack lingered in Zayden’s mind and had sent a wave of adrenaline through Zayden’s entire body.

Ned chuckled. “You look so hyper, mate.”

“This is why I don’t like watching action movies.” Zayden admitted before laughing. “But, you’re right. I wanna do something exciting. Take down someone or something.”

“You can’t.” Ned laughed. “No one would take you seriously.”

Zayden huffed and puffed out his chest. “You don’t know that.”

“Actually,” Ned stopped Zayden. “I do. I’m your best friend after all.”

“Ouch. Your words still hurt me.”

“They are meant to.”

Zayden opened his mouth but yelped and clutched his head as a sharp pain rang through his head. Ned jumped slightly at the outburst and grabbed Zayden’s arm, his eyes growing concerned.

“Zayden? What’s wrong?” Ned asked, voice dropping in volume.

Zayden gritted his teeth. “There’s…Something is trying to capture my attention.”

“Do you know what it is?” Ned helped lead Zayden down the path.

Zayden just shook his head and Ned fell silent.

“Boss? Ned?” The two teenagers turned their heads to see Karen swoop down towards them. “What is wrong?”

“Something is bothering, Zayden.” Ned stated.

“I can see that, genius.” Karen snapped but anyone could tell that she was worried about Zayden and just didn’t know what to do for him. “What is it?”

“We don’t know.” Ned sounded distressed. “He just felt is out of the blue. There was no warning at all.”

Karen landed on Zayden’s shoulder and nuzzled his cheek. Her cold metal felt lovely and relaxed Zayden in a different way to Ned’s presence.

Zayden looked around the street and frowning as he stared off in a seemingly random direction. Before Ned or Karen could say anything, Zayden walked down the street, following his senses and trusting them to lead him to where he needed to go.

“Z-Peter!” Ned yelled, almost slipping up with the names. “Where are you going?!”

“I don’t know.” Zayden admitted without waiting for Ned to catch up to him. “However, I am not worried about this fact.”

Karen screeched from beside his ear, but it didn’t even deter him. “What do you mean you aren’t worried? This is why you have almost died several times already.”

Zayden just rolled his eyes but ignored Karen and Ned’s complaints even though he knew where their fears and worries were stemming from. It wasn’t like he hated them in these moments, he still loves them dearly. After all, sometimes he did need Ned to bring him back into reality.

Ned paused and stared wide eyed up at the building which they had found themselves in front of. “What is this place?”

“I don’t know, but whatever is bothering me is coming from him.” Zayden said and frowning to himself. Uncertain whether or not if he should enter the building, Zayden noticed that his senses had calmed down and he realised he could back out if he wanted to. Honestly, he was about to before Ned spoke up.

“We should check it out then.”

“What?” Karen sounded annoyed and stressed. “Do I have to keep both of you out of trouble again?”

Ned turned to Zayden who was just staring at his best friend as though he had grown a second head. “Seriously. Let’s see what is in here? It can’t be a threat since you would’ve steered as far away from here if it really was a trap.”

Zayden blinked. “You are willing to join me in this?”

“Mate, if I wasn’t here you would be turning tail and running off and trying to push this to the back of your mind.”

Zayden really hated the fact that Ned was one hundred percent correct in his claims.

A long sigh emitted from the vigilante and Ned just said that he was right. Zayden looked at the building and nodded to himself before entering the building with Ned right beside him and Karen remaining on his shoulder.

“So…” Ned stressed out as he looked around the building. “What is this place?”

Zayden could only stare at the artefacts that littered the room, stuck in their own enclosed cases. That radiated something that was prickling at the back of Zayden’s mind but he tried to ignore these feelings. It’s not like they could outright harm him.

Ned looked at Zayden and shivering. “Hey, Zay…Are you getting the feeling that someone is watching us?”

Now that Ned mentioned it, yes. Zayden could feel eyes on him but he was unable to locate where they were watching _from_. It wasn’t like he wasn’t trying. He was trying his hardest but it was as though whoever it was didn’t want to be noticed.

Karen growled. “Who is here?”

Zayden shifted. “We are the ones who are here uninvited, Karen. We should probably leave.” Even if he didn’t want to and everything was luring him further into the building.

Ned frowned. “Come on.”

“No, there is something off and I don’t want to find out.”

“Going already?”

An unknown voice rang out and they spun around to face the stair case where a person dressed in sorcerer clothing stood with a cape flowing behind him despite no wind being present. Karen let out a robotic growl that raised in volume when the man took a step forward.

Ned squeaked. “Yeah, we were just leaving.”

“Stay.” Several more people stepped forward and Zayden and Ned paused and looked at each other before turning their gazes back to the new comers.

“Are you the God Thor and Bruce Banner?!”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took a little while and had to figure out how to stretch this chapter out a little more

Two of the males smiled at that question and the others didn’t look fazed by the outburst from the teenagers.

Then again, it was expected.

“I’m not surprised you know them.” The male with long black hair muttered and shot a displeased look at Thor – well they thought it was Thor. It looked like him but he was missing an eye and his hair was much shorter than they remembered.

“Don’t be like that, brother.” Thor stated simply.

The man with the cloak seemed to realise that the two teenagers were just frozen in shock and silence.

“Let me introduce ourselves to you two.” The man spoke, startling Zayden and Ned out of their surprise.

“I am Doctor Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, this is my friend Wong, you already know Banner and Thor but this is Loki and Brunnhilde.” The male pointed to everyone in question. “I apologise if we startled you.”

Ned squeaked. “Wow…I never thought I’d ever meet Bruce Banner. THE Bruce Banner.” He turned to Zayden with wide eyes. “Pete! Pete! Can you believe it?!”

Zayden grumbled. “I’m Iron Man’s intern, nothing can really faze me anymore.”

Ned huffed but Zayden could still see the excited sparkle in his eyes.

Karen sniffed and raised her chin to eye the people in front of them. “I seriously want to leave. I don’t wanna hang around, no matter how safe they may be.”

Stephen blinked. “You do not trust us?”

Zayden shook his head and snapped out of his silence and thoughts. “You led me here! There is no way that you don’t know.”

“We knew you were Spiderman.” Stephen nodded in agreement. “So, you are right that we led you here on purpose.”

“How…How did you know?” Zayden asked, despite not wanting to know the truth. It’s best he learns the truth from them before someone else tells him.

Karen lowered herself. “I really don’t want to be here.”

“Neither do I, girl.” Zayden whispered. “But I want to know the truth.”

His AI grumbled but said nothing else.

Thor spoke up and Ned and Zayden grew in awe at God – even though the latter really didn’t want to hang around either. “I can answer that question for you. One of my closest friends, Heimdall, is capable of viewing all living beings in the Nine Realms – which Earth is a part of.”

“So…This Heimdall guy knows I’m Spiderman?” Zayden spoke hesitantly. If that was truly the case, then Heimdall would _also_ know that Zayden was in fact Zayden Stark and not Peter Parker.

It seemed like Ned also reached the same realisation.

Ned took a step back. “So…Uh…Peter, we have a lot of homework to finish off, don’t we? We should really be heading off to start on those assignments.”

Zayden nodded. “Yeah.”

But before they could, they both heard the door slam shut even though there was no wind to cause such a noise. Ned and Zayden yelped as they spun around to face the now closed door of the sanctum. Karen growled loudly in a warning as Zayden felt unease and fear creep through his body.

Zayden looked over his shoulder at them and felt his entire body tense up to prepare for a fight or flight situation. “What was that for? You can’t keep us here.”

Loki raised an eyebrow. “We absolutely can.”

Bruce shook his head. “We don’t want to but we just want to talk.”

“You can talk but still have the door open.” Zayden pointed out. “What makes you think we’re going to listen now that you’ve pretty much forced us to stay here.”

“Not the best option but our only option.” Wong nodded solemnly.

Zayden curled his lips back slightly and Karen hissed. “Just open the door and we’ll listen to whatever you have to say.”

“How do we know you aren’t going to bolt the second you will?” Stephen pressed.

“Well, you don’t until you open it.” Zayden muttered.

Ned nodded his head. “We’re more likely to leave now.”

“Why?”

“Because you are holding us against our will.”

“You are in here willingly.”

Ned and Zayden shared a look with one another and both knew exactly what each other were thinking.

They really weren’t.

Zayden’s body was forcing him to head off towards the sanctum and wanted to leave and not follow it in the first place.

“Just because we were curious means nothing.” Ned said. “I get curious about cooking humans but that doesn’t mean I am going to cook someone.”

Zayden looked at him and furrowed his brows. “You fuckin what?”

Ned shrugged. “I was bored?”

“Is that an answer?” Zayden spluttered then shook his head. “You know what? Never mind. I don’t wanna know.”

“Neither do I, you are fine.” Ned laughed.

The boys looked at a clearing of a throat. The expressions on the adults were a range of confusion, disgust and stupefied about what Ned had just said out loud.

“Don’t be too confused.” Zayden spoke. “This is the weirdest conversation we’ve had.”

“What was the weirdest conversation then?” Brunnhilde asked, curious.

Ned opened his mouth but Stephen interjected.

“We are not discussing anything but what we need to discuss.”

Karen looked at the teenagers who looked confused. Zayden turned to them and opened his mouth to speak.

Loki waved his hand. “We just want to talk, Zayden Stark.”

Ice ran down Zayden’s spine as his eyes widened, his fear and thoughts confirmed with that simple statement that pierced his body. Karen growled lowly at that statement as though she was preparing to fight even though she couldn’t do much. Ned tugged on Zayden’s shirt and Zayden almost fell backwards at that.

“You do know who I am…” Zayden muttered.

“Well, we did mention Heimdall being able to see anything.” Loki stated, ignoring the looks everyone else was giving him.

Zayden shook his head, stepping backwards. “That means nothing, you shouldn’t have said anything…”

“Pete…” Ned trailed off.

“Zayden, you have to listen. We just want to talk with you and nothing else. We promise.” Stephen spoke carefully but Zayden couldn’t hear what he was saying.

All he could hear was the blood rushing through his body as his entire body deemed this place a threat. They locked the doors behind him. They know who he is. They wanted to talk. They felt like talking normally wasn’t going to be enough to keep Zayden in the building.

This was dangerous.

“We have to –“

“Let. Me. Out.”

They reeled back in surprise. “What?”

Zayden spat. “Let me out! Or are you hard of hearing?!”

Stephen tried to protest but Loki waved his hand and the door clicked open. Zayden met Loki’s gaze who nodded in understanding – as if he knew what Zayden was going through. Karen sniffed and shifted on Zayden’s shoulder as her human turned on his heel and ran towards the door, tugging Ned along with him.

Ned looked over his shoulder as they opened the doors and exited the building.

The sky had darkened to a point where the lights on the street had flickered on. Zayden shook his head and hurried down the street, ignoring Karen’s yelp of surprise and Ned’s calls for him to wait and slow down.

He really didn’t want to wait or hang around that building any longer.

~~~~~~~~~

Bruce turned to Loki. “Did you really have to do that?”

Loki shrugged. “We needed to move the conversation forward.”

“And now he is gone.” Bruce pointed out. 

Loki sighed. “Okay…I didn’t think it through.”

“DO YOU EVER THINK ANYTHING THROUGH?!”

~~~~~~~~~~

Karen chirped breaking the silence that had surrounded Zayden and Ned. “Hey, look over there.”

Ned raising an eyebrow before turning his head and squeaked. “Zayden, look!” He tugged on Zayden’s shirt sleeve. “Karen has pointed out something man.”

Zayden frowned and turned his head, brows furrowing as he tried to figure out what had captured Karen and Ned’s attention. Suddenly, he saw it.

It was Tony and Pepper inside a store talking with one another about something that he was too far away to hear clearly. Not like he wanted to know anyway. That was just invasion of privacy – he was pointedly ignoring him doing that in the tower because that was a different situation.

He looked over at Ned. “Why are you so excited? It’s not like I can go over and just speak to them.”

“But, can’t you?” Ned pressured as they continued walking down the street.

“I mean…I _could_ theoretically.” Zayden shrugged. “But I don’t see any point in doing so. There is nothing I can talk about with them, maybe except my work but that is pointless.”

“How is it pointless?” Ned asked, sounding slightly offended. “We could inform them that THE Bruce Banner and Thor are here.”

Zayden looked at Ned with wide eyes. “Are you crazy?!” He hissed. “That would lead to questions I don’t want to answer. What if they find out and then inform them of my truth? That would throw everything off!”

Ned sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. I am just thinking impulsively.”

Zayden nudged Ned. “It’s alright, mate. Let’s just get back to my place, May is probably wondering why as though we aren’t back yet.”

“Good point.” Ned agreed and they decided to head off back to Queens.

Karen leaped off of Zayden’s shoulder and walked behind the two teenagers. Her gaze focused on Tony and Pepper, catching Zayden’s attention when he realised that his AI was no longer with him.

“Karen? What is it?” Zayden asked, walking back to her. “Come on, we have to go home.”

Karen frowned, eyes narrowing at the adults who had left their building. They looked up, probably realising they were being watched. Zayden stiffened when he noticed Tony’s gaze settle on Karen – a look of confusion and perplexity had overtaken his face.

“Karen.” Zayden hissed urgently. “We have to go.”

Karen shook herself and looked up at Zayden and nodded mutely. She crouched and leaped back onto his shoulder and turned away from Pepper and Tony.

“Okay. We can go home now.”

Zayden sighed heavily. “Why are you like this? Do you want Tony to figure out I’m Spiderman?”

“I feel like he’s going to find that out sooner or later anyway.” Karen pointed out.

“Yeah, I’d rather it be under my terms, girl.”

Ned pursed his lips, eyes soft and full of concern even though Zayden really wished that he wasn’t looking at him like that.

Yeah, sure.

He was worried about people he doesn’t know knowing about _BOTH_ of his secrets that he has spent so long keeping hidden. That would be harder to accept, especially since they revealed this knowledge even without his permission – the fact no one else was around means nothing.

Still though.

What had caught his attention? What had made his senses and mind so intrigued that it wanted to figure it out? That couldn’t be a coincidence. There was something about them that Zayden couldn’t pin point exactly and just wanted these answers so he could have some kind of peace of mind.

Ned. “You alright?”

“No.” Zayden knew it would be pointless to lie to his best friend. “I am just worried.”

“Fair enough.” Ned nodded, looking thoughtful. “I mean the only other person who knows you are Spiderman is in jail.”

Zayden winced. He really didn’t want a reminder about Adrien Toomes. The Vulture’s threat to kill him still lingered in his mind and kept him awake when his brain was unable to shut off and let him sleep. The knowledge that the second he left jail he could be after Zayden was too much to handle sometimes.

What especially didn’t help was the memory of a statement that Toomes had spoken to him.

He had friends who were eager to get their hands-on Spiderman even if they haven’t personally met Spiderman like Toomes had.

They weren’t people he knew, but people that worked with someone who was in jail alongside Toomes.

Zayden’s hands clenched into fists by his side.

He could try everything but even he knew that he couldn’t do this by himself. He just hoped that Tony knew about him being Spiderman before these people targeted and found Zayden. Otherwise he would be pretty much fucked. He didn’t know how to fight properly after all.

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony’s eyes narrowed as he watched Zayden and Ned walk down the street, a hawk perched on Zayden’s shoulder.

It was a hawk he remembered from several nights ago.

“Tony, what is it?” Pepper asked.

Tony shook his head and looked at his wife. “I don’t…That hawk…That hawk is Spiderman’s AI.”

“Is it?” Pepper sounded confused and doubtful. Tony really couldn’t blame her. “You’re going crazy.”

“No. That _IS_ Spiderman’s AI.” Tony sounded set. “I recognise that AI anywhere.”

Pepper sighed and shook her head. Neither had any real evidence that that hawk was in fact Spiderman’s AI, nor did they have any evidence to the contrary. Zayden being Spiderman was strange and unlikely.

“Don’t ask him, just wait until he reveals the truth himself.” Pepper pointed out and Tony nodded. 

“I wasn’t going to look up Spiderman’s identity. I could’ve done that ages ago if I really wanted to.” Tony pointed out and Pepper knew he was telling the truth. Tony was fully aware of privacy and didn’t want to break any trust between him and the vigilante that had taken a while to form.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This took so long to work up the ability to write this chapter out
> 
> Just a little bit of lore with the Infinity/Cosmic Stones and some more Karen

Zayden rubbed his face as he stared at his homework, the words were jumbling together as he struggled to organise his thoughts on finishing it. It’s strange that he wasn’t able to focus on the chemistry work, considering that he could normally finish it within an hour. And it has been about two hours since he started.

Since he stumbled upon the sanctum, his mind was firing off in many directions. Pulling his concentration to many different issues running around New York. That wasn’t even touching on the fact of Asgard and it’s destruction which could be potentially damaging to the Realms Thor resided over – but that wasn’t his place to talk about.

He promised May and Ned that he wouldn’t be doing any Spiderman stuff because of wanting to focus on his school work for the time being. He kept getting distracted and it was showing.

Zayden turned his head to stare out the window. It was still light out and he was home alone because May was at work for a longer shift. Her colleagues weren’t the nicest to her, Zayden knew one called in sick just to avoid doing any more work. It was clear by May’s expression.

She wouldn’t be back for hours so she wouldn’t know if Zayden left to go and visit the sanctum cause he felt as though it was dragging him back to it. He had a feeling it had something to do with the people within it or maybe they had something that was catching his mind’s attention.

He slammed his book shut, startling Karen who was settled on his bed. Her screech ripped through the air and she huffed, glaring at her boss in annoyance.

“I was resting. You could’ve warned me.”

“Sorry, girl.”

Zayden looked around his room and made sure he grabbed his phone, stuffing it into his jeans pocket. Karen sat fully up, looking at him with a curious expression – as much as she could anyway.

“Where are you going?”

“Out.”

Karen rolled her eyes before leaping onto Zayden’s shoulder, tail twitching and curling around his upper arm. “Where?”

“The Sanctum. My mind keeps pulling me back to it.” Zayden explained as he threw on his shoes before leaving his room, grabbing a spare set of keys on the counter top. “I want answers and I feel like they can give me those.”

“But they know who you are.” Karen pointed out, ears laying back expressing her worry and concern for Zayden’s safety.

Zayden shrugged, slightly dislodging his AI. “Then that is more reason for me to demand answers from them.”

Karen grumbled. “Fine, fine. I’ll keep an eye out for any unwanted attention.”

“Isn’t that part of your code anyway?” Zayden asked even though he knew it was. He spent days stressing over her code wanting it to be as perfect as he could get it. Even then many would say that he didn’t even achieve that properly.

Didn’t really help considering she is more emotional and learns from humans and their expressive nature to adjust herself. She can easily answer a call and make someone believe that they are actually talking to a human and not an AI or bot. May, Ned and MJ aren’t fooled by her no matter how much Karen tries.

“You should know that answer.” Karen muttered.

“I do.” Zayden replied simply as he strolled down the street, following his senses and hoping they led him to the Sanctum.

Suddenly, something washed over him and he paused, feet stopping in the middle of the path. He noticed several people look at him with annoyed expressions, or curious ones to Karen who just hissed at them. It gets them to turn away and ignore her again, though a metal cat wasn’t the strangest thing people have ever seen.

Zayden’s eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to focus himself on finding the source of what had caught his attention. However, with all of the people around him, it was enough to deter the aura that had struck out at him.

As though it was pleased he noticed it but wanted to mess around with him instead of assisting him. His gaze shifted upwards at the apartment blocks around him.

That was then he noticed it.

Well, noticed _her_.

Infinity.

She was on a balcony with someone else and considering their auras were very similar and blended in together, he figured that they would have to be siblings. Who the male was, was not something that Zayden could identify nor did he care much for in that moment.

He raised a single eyebrow at Infinity who turned to who he guessed was her brother before they entered the room behind them.

“Strange.” Karen muttered, eyes also focused on them before turning to Zayden. “Who are they?”

Zayden pursed his lips. “That was Infinity but I don’t know who was with her.”

“Okay. So, we still heading towards the Sanctum?”

“Yeah.” Zayden nodded and turned around before following the power that was radiating from the building that he managed to identify and keep in the forefront of his mind. “I thought that the Cosmic Entities would stay as far away from mortals as possible.”

“Perhaps they do, but with the Mind Stone they are around watching it.” Karen huffed. “Didn’t you say that their aura is older than the Mind Stone?”

“Yeah.”

“But there is also the Time and Space Stones here. So maybe they are being protectors of what they created.”

“Maybe.”

Zayden looked up at the building and sighed heavily, his body tensing with unease eating away at the back of his mind. Karen sniffed and nuzzled his cheek lightly; her fake fur was soft against his skin and managed to coax him into relaxing.

“We don’t have to be here.” She purred quietly.

Not like she needed to. People were highly unobservant if they didn’t need to pay attention to what others were saying. It did surprise her that Ned and Zayden hadn’t revealed Zayden’s secret as Spiderman at school but then again who was paying attention to what people said in high school? Zayden and Ned wouldn’t talk about it if they weren’t certain that their fellow classmates would just brush it aside.

They were right but that didn’t mean Karen understood why.

Zayden pushed the door open, hearing the old wood groan and creak under the movement. It surprised him because he was expecting that it was used often. It didn’t creak like that when he and Ned arrived only a few days prior after all.

Karen sniffed and stood up fully on Zayden’s shoulder, her ears pulled forward and tail raising up. Zayden caught the action in the reflection on a glass container. It held a staff and he rested his palm against the glass.

The staff felt old and powerful, glinting in the amber light from high above them. Zayden pulled his hand away to look around once more. Everything here was old and powerful.

It seemed like magic.

Or as magic as the world could get.

Magic was just science unexplained after all.

“Hello?” Zayden called; he could feel that there were people here but weren’t approaching him even though he knew they knew he was there. “Look, did you guys want me here? I can just leave.”

Karen huffed. “We should go.”

The teenager hummed in agreement but approached the staircase. Karen made a frustrated noise at his actions. His gaze flickered around the room once more before he heard footsteps slowly draw closer.

“I thought you weren’t going to return.”

Zayden looked up at Stephen Strange who was watching him with a critical eye.

“I didn’t want to, but whatever drew me here in the first place wanted me to come back.” Zayden admitted, folding his arms and meeting Stephen’s gaze evenly. He wasn’t going to run away this time.

Stephen hummed. “I was wondering if the Time and Space Stones would capture your attention.”

“What?” Zayden paused, brows furrowing in confusion. “Are they like the Mind Stone in that regard?”

“Yes. I’m surprised you don’t know about the six Infinity Stones.”

Karen paused and looked at Zayden. “Did only Infinity make the stones? Why are they named after her?” her voice was so low only Zayden heard her questions.

That was a valid concern. It didn’t seem like Infinity was the sole creator of the stones.

“No, I haven’t had the ability to do my own research on them without people getting suspicious.” Zayden pointed out. “Why would a teenager want to know about them? Also, where on Earth would I find that kind of information.”

Stephen looked around and beckoned Zayden up the stairs. “Come with me. I’ll explain everything to you in due time.”

Zayden looked at Karen who simply said and did nothing, expecting Zayden to make the right choice. He sighed and murmured to her. “That’s code for not telling me until much later.” 

Zayden followed Stephen up the stairs who began talking.

“You already know about the Mind Stone.”

Zayden nodded. “Yeah, but it’s not like I know that much about it.”

More like he wanted someone to confirm his suspicions about it.

“Well. The Mind Stone is able to alter the thought and mind processing of any living being that is capable of intelligent and intellectual thought processes. It is very difficult to break out of its spell but like all Infinity Stones they can only be in use when someone uses it directly. They cannot work without someone in control.”

Karen hummed. “It sounds like the creators of the stones knew exactly what they were doing when they created them then.”

Stephen looked at them, as if he knew that there was something Zayden and Karen were keeping to themselves. However, he carried on with his explanations.

“The Time Stone is just what is sounds like. You can head into the future or past, changing your past actions if you really want to change the present and future. You can even trap yourself and others into a time loop that only you can break, and it won’t break even if the carrier is killed because the Time Stone will just revive you as it restarts the loop. Only the user is fully aware during time jumps, as the Time Stone prevents you from forgetting and then it allows you to return to your actual time, but those that the user wants to remember will.” Stephen hummed nudging the necklace around his neck. “You can even focus on a few people to bring them back to life if they happen to die but of course to a certain degree when it comes to when they actually did die.”

“Extreme.” Zayden muttered, not entirely surprised by those words. After all, one could figure that out just by hearing that the name is the _Time Stone_. “But, not surprising.”

“You already knew that?” Stephen asked.

“I already _guessed_ that.” Zayden clarified. “But you know a lot about the Time Stone.”

“I’ve used the Time Stone several times.” Stephen stated simply. “The more you use it the more you understand the powers and dangers of using them.”

Zayden nodded. That explained the more knowledge Stephen had about that particular Stone.

“The Space Stone is capable of sending the user and whoever it wants through space and allows them to appear anywhere that they wish or want to. The Space Stone, however, has a limit on how far it can go, the Power Stone could be able to amplify the power and distance the Space Stone can travel with a user. The more people could make it more difficult to do long trips with it as well.”

“Not much to say about it?” Zayden perked up, confused by the lack of information. 

He figured that there wouldn’t be much to explain about it since that was all it seemed to do. Just teleport people but even then shouldn’t there be more information that they gathered from it? It is with them.

“No, it’s one of the easiest Stones to understand. The Power Stone just enhances the power of the other stones and is capable of destruction and creation.” Stephen explained. “It does what it says. There isn’t much else to say.”

Zayden looked at Karen who huffed out. Obviously, she wanted more information about something that they didn’t have access to. She liked to learn and when she learnt more it benefit what Zayden knew, since she never forgot any information.

“Nothing else?” Zayden tilted his head.

“No, but it is the second strongest Stone.” Stephen answered.

Zayden and Stephen stopped outside a room and Zayden watched him.

“Are you going to finish the briefest explanations I have ever heard about the Infinity Stones?”

Stephen looked at him with an annoyed expression and Zayden just shrugged.

“What? It’s true.”

“Fine. The Reality Stone does what it says as well. It is able to change the reality around you as long as it is in use and can fool anyone. As long as they haven’t seen the stone being used themselves.”

Karen looked at the necklace which glinted in the light and looked at Zayden.

He knew that look.

It was a question and Zayden pushed his attention onto the necklace. Yeah, there was power radiating from it. It felt like the power that captured his attention which explained Stephen’s previous statement about being surprised that the Time and Space Stones caught Zayden’s attention like they had.

“That’s five Stones. How many are there?”

“Six.”

“Then what is the sixth stone?”

“The Soul Stone.”

The Soul Stone? Life and death possibly? “What does it do?”

Stephen sighed. “We don’t know. No-one knows where the Soul Stone is, as the most powerful stone it is kept hidden and its location is undisclosed to no one. No one has managed to find it in all the years people have known about it.”

“But it must have something to do with the soul, right? Like life and death.” Zayden spoke. “Right?”

“That is the running theory anyway.” Stephen agreed.

Zayden looked at the door once again, feeling the Space Stone within the room itself. Well, it would _have_ to be the Space Stone. It was the only other Stone within the Sanctum.

“So…?” He motioned towards the door. “Are we going in?”

“You are taking this in stride.” Stephen noted.

“Well, it’s not the craziest thing I’ve ever experienced or heard. Plus, I’ll probably freak out about this later when I’m back at home.” Zayden shrugged and Karen snickered at his statement. Clearly, she knew that he would react appropriately when he no longer needed to.

Stephen opened the door and both were struck by arguing voices. That somehow Zayden managed to not hear.

“Come on! Why are you ruining my fun?”

“Your ‘fun’ is going to be terrible.”

“You have no sense of joy.”

“Loki. Wong. Please.”

“No! Bruce, tell him that I’m not going to do anything. I can’t anyway since I’m not allowed to leave this building without one of you sticking to me.” Loki sounded huffy and annoyed about his current circumstance.

“Loki come on. You know why.” Bruce spoke. “You know what the world leaders will do if they find out that you are here, let alone myself and Thor.”

“You and Thor have an alibi.” Loki muttered.

“We’ve been in space. We’ll be quarantined and examined.”

“Still got an alibi. I’ll be locked up.”

Zayden felt concern flutter through his body. He felt sorry for Loki. He was right. They’d lock Loki up if they find out that he is here.

Perhaps they’d even do the same to Bruce and Thor, considering they are incredibly powerful. The UN would raise eyebrows once they found them and probably interrogate them.

He doubted they would though if Tony Stark had any say in it – he didn’t want the other Avengers to get caught either. They are just pissed off with him despite not knowing that he was doing what he could to help them at the very least.

Zayden remembered how Karen claimed loudly that the Avengers didn’t deserve Tony. She was very adamant into that thought.

“Hey!” Stephen snapped loudly, catching Bruce, Wong and Loki’s attention.

“Stephen.” Wong nodded.

Loki looked at Stephen. “You have brought the kid.”

Zayden grumbled to himself. “I’m not really a kid and he didn’t bring me here. I came here on my own accord.”

Stephen decided to ignore Loki and Zayden’s statements. “Where is Thor and Brunnhilde?”

“They went to the rest of the Asgardians to ensure they were fine with the Vanir.” Wong explained.

Stephen nodded and then turned to Loki. “To answer your unspoken question, yes. He can sense the Space and Time Stones even when they aren’t being used and they caught his attention. Drawing him back here.”

Zayden folded his arms. “I came here on my own accord, remember?” Once again, he was bluntly ignored.

“How is that possible?” Bruce asked stepping closer to Zayden with a curious glint in his eye.

Karen hissed a warning which caught Bruce’s attention.

“Is that an AI robot?” His expression was shocked and intrigued.

Zayden almost asked him why he didn’t recognise Karen before. Surely he would’ve noticed her before, right?

Zayden answered both questions. “I think it might be because my senses have increased so much because of the radiation and genetic alteration that occurred to me. Also, yes. This is Karen my AI – I created her after the robot forms she can embody.” He paused and then raised an eyebrow. “She was with me last time I was here.”

Bruce was in awe at Karen and held his hand out to her but the AI pointedly rejected the offer. She sniffed at him but turned her head away, tail flicking from side to side.

Zayden knew she wasn’t actually angry and displeased with Bruce. There was no reason for her to do so. Maybe except for the fact that Bruce didn’t recognise her.

She was just being dramatic.

That and Zayden should probably be nicer overall. They were adults and knew more than he did in this situation.

Wong met Zayden’s gaze. “Are you going to hang around?”

“No, I should be heading back home, my aunt may be home soon and I don’t want to worry her.” Zayden responded, shaking his head. “Though, thank you for telling me about the Infinity Stones.”

“You’re welcome, I guess.” Stephen replied. “I figured you needed to know.”

Suddenly, a brush of cold air pressed against Zayden's neck. Before he could turn his head there was a low hiss by his ear.

_”They are the Cosmic Stones, created by the Cosmic Entities, not the Infinity Stones.”_

_Zayden jumped at the voice he recognised as Infinity’s. He hadn’t heard her for a while but the voice was unmistakeable when you’ve heard it once. It could sound like any and all living humans voices. Except the tone and the cold air set it apart from everyone else._

_“Are you alright?” Bruce asked._

__So, they didn’t hear, see or feel anything._ Zayden thought. “Yeah, I’m just jumpy. Too much power in this place, I’m not used to it. That’s all.” He stepped back. “I should really be on my way.”_

_They said goodbye to him and Zayden quickly rushed out of the building, Karen digging her claws into his shoulder to stabilise herself._

_Zayden hissed quietly. “That wasn’t very nice, Infinity. I thought you were meant to be nice.”_

_He heard a soft laugh. “Life isn’t very nice, Zayden. You should know that. Death is the sweet relief and Life is the sour fact.”_

_The teenager grumbled._

_Just because she was right doesn’t mean he liked it._


	12. Chapter 12

Zayden huffing and staring at his hands in full concentration.

“Take a deep breath and focus.”

“I was until you spoke.” Zayden muttered.

Stephen groaned and looked highly ticked off with the teenager who was being uncharacteristically grumpy that day. Zayden usually wasn’t so quick to piss off but that day was not a day that was going right for him.

It had been an entire week since Zayden had last visited the Sanctum and that day was settled on assisting Zayden in figuring out other ways to help him with his vigilante work. As Thor and Brunnhilde were still not back yet he couldn’t work on his hand-to-hand combat.

They were meant to be back really soon but so far had not returned.

“This is getting nowhere.”

“Didn’t it take you a month to come to grasp with creating portals?” Zayden snapped, temper flaring. “So I don’t know why you are so irritated with my lack of improvement.”

“That is because I was denying magic as whole!” Stephen snapped back. “You are not so I don’t know why your brain can’t focus and work for you considering it is your strongest attribute.”

Zayden huffed and dropped his arms to his sides, gritting his teeth out of annoyance and irritation.

Stephen made a good point.

Portals should be easy for him, even Wong said it himself. He had been a mage longer than Stephen has so it made sense he would be more aware of who would be good at their magic and who would take longer to learn it.

Karen was curled up on one of the chairs, her tail twitching ever so slightly like a cat’s normally would as well when they slept.

It still struck him at how much she looked like a normal cat.

Stephen rubbed his face and looked around the room they were situated in. It was meant to be able to help Zayden focus his mind into focusing on one thing instead of several. It helped that you couldn’t hear the outside world from within it.

“Look,” Zayden turned to look at Stephen who seemed to be contemplating something, “I’m going to go and get Loki.”

“You hate Loki.” Zayden spoke. “Why are you getting him?”

Stephen said nothing but just left the room. Karen raised her head.

“Boss?” Zayden looked back and sent her a shrug, obviously not sure what Stephen was thinking or considering. She sniffed before turning around and curling back up, clearly not wanting to be disturbed.

He couldn’t blame her.

He wished he could be asleep, it was still so early in the morning. The sun was nowhere near rising when he woke up and left the apartment that morning.

Stephen and Wong claimed it was because they could spend more time honing Zayden’s skills and abilities.

He just figured they wanted to just make him spend less time patrolling.

Either one was too plausible.

The door opened once more as Stephen re-entered the room.

“What did Loki say?” Zayden asked. “Did he say I should be taking a break?”

He really wished it was that. Loki was nice to him even when Wong and Stephen doubted that Loki was alright and didn’t need to be constantly watched. Bruce didn’t and Loki hadn’t tried to do anything bad, just liked to troll everyone from to time.

“No, but he suggested I try a different type of magic.” Stephen responded and Zayden visibly deflated at those words.

Looks like he wasn’t going to get the break that he so desperately wanted.

Stephen must’ve noticed the mood shift. “Look, he said this will be easier that creating portals because it’s summoning power from within yourself and expressing it in a type of magic. Which varies from person to person.”

Zayden grumbled quietly to himself. “As long as I can get a break soon.”

“You will, just give this a try.”

~~~~~~~~~

It had been a solid hour.

One full solid hour of Zayden trying out this different type of magic.

Zayden let out a loud and annoyed yell, lashing his arm out. He wasn’t expecting anything to happen yet he saw flames and sparks running across his skin. Warming his arm with a weird sensation.

Stephen blinked in shock and surprise.

“Zayden.”

“I can summon fire?” Zayden asked, voice full of disbelief. “How the actual fuck?”

“Language.” Stephen said but it had no oomph that that word was usually used with, let alone the normal tone was missing.

“No, but how?” Zayden asked, shaking his arm and watching as the flamed dispersed. Vanishing from sight but their warmth and sound were still crackling in his ears.

It was a strange feeling.

“I…Power from within you must have manifested itself as flames.” Stephen explained. “Maybe it has something to do with your parents or with the meaning of your name.”

That made sense.

After all, Zayden meant “little fire” and both of his parents could be associated with fire. Creating the Iron Man suits and Extremis.

Zayden sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Can I take that break now? I’ve improved.”

“Yeah, you can.” Stephen nodded and Zayden let out a happy and pleased noise from the back of his throat.

However, before either of them could move a loud yell ripped through the air.

“We have to avoid him!”

“We can’t! You told me yourself!”

“So now you are listening to me?!”

“I just needed to make sure…”

“It won’t be safe with me or you!”

“I know that!”

“It will stay hidden here!”

“I am just saying!”

“I know!”

A loud rippling noise broke through the air and they both heard Loki’s yell.

“The Infinity Stones are safe nowhere!”

“What-?” Stephen started as Bruce walked into the room, looking ticked off slightly.

Looked like that day was going wrong for everybody.

“They were arguing about Thanos.” Bruce said simply which caught Zayden’s attention.

“Thanos?”

Bruce and Stephen turned to face Zayden who looked stupefied at the name and the implication. He didn’t have to be a genius to understand that name belonged to one of danger and someone who you don’t want to fight or cross. It gave off that certain vibe that Zayden learned the hard way to listen for.

“Someone of extreme intelligence and strength.” Bruce explained. “Loki had a run in with him, and it wasn’t the best thing he’d ever dealt with.”

Stephen looked at Bruce. “I wasn’t aware that Thor was back.”

“He arrived like twenty minutes ago but you two were so engrossed into whatever you two were doing that we decided not to interfere.” Bruce explained.

Zayden felt himself pout.

He was really looking forward to meeting and talking to Thor properly.

Karen padded over to him and leaped onto his shoulder, whispering into his ear. “Your bi thoughts are showing.”

“It’s _Thor_.” Zayden stressed to her just as quietly. “Who wouldn’t find him attractive?”

“Those who don’t swing that way?” Karen suggested.

“Kill joy.”

“Just being honest.” The AI stated simply and looked at Bruce and Stephen who were discussing something in hushed whispers which Zayden didn’t want to eavesdrop on.

“Should I just leave?” Zayden asked, pointing behind himself as Bruce and Stephen turned to face him. “I mean, I don’t know what this is about and I don’t want to be here if I don’t need to.”

“Yes, it will be the best option if you leave.” Stephen agreed.

Okay.

Zayden stepped back and moved to walk away.

So they weren’t going to tell him about Thanos.

Just because he understood doesn’t mean he liked it.

Karen remained on his shoulder even when he left the Sanctum.

“Where are we going?”

“To Stark Tower.”

~~~~~~~~~

The hoverboard remained off of the table for a few beats before Zayden guided it back down. It wasn’t perfect and it would still be a little while before it was fully finished.

At least it was an improvement to what it was a while ago.

“Hello, Parker.” Tina flopped into the chair near him, making Zayden jump slightly as he was not expecting her to show up.

“Tina!” He shot her a look as Karen looked amused at Zayden’s luck – which he had none of.

“So, how’s life?” Tina asked, leaning against the table and watching him with an expression that told him to not bullshit her.

“It’s been fine.” Zayden leaned away from the table and turned his gaze to the ceiling. “Nothing new.”

“Nothing out of the ordinary?”

“Nope.”

“Nothing _mystical_?”

“What do you know about mystical?”

“I know everything about things that are mystical.”

Zayden snorted at the comment but chose not to say anything else.

Tina huffed upon realising that Zayden wasn’t going to be telling her anything (especially since she often forgot that FRIDAY was this all-seeing AI in the tower).

“Hey Princess Shuri!”

Zayden snapped his head towards Tina who only smirked at him before walking towards said female who Zayden didn’t even know was back in New York. He figured there was some issue that T’Challa needed to work out and Shuri managed to persuade him into letting her tag along again.

He watched the two females talk and saw Tina motion towards him. Shuri looked confused and sceptical but seemed to agree with what Tina was saying.

Why would _anyone_ agree with Tina?

She was a menace and she fucking _knew_ it.

“Hey, Peter.” Shuri spoke, voice light and somewhat playful.

“Hey, Princess.” Zayden responded. “I didn’t know you were back in New York.”

She shrugged. “I wasn’t planning to but I think I was driving my mum insane.”

Zayden’s lips twitched upwards at the comment. It seemed unlikely but he did remember what T’Challa would say about the pranks Shuri would pull on the people around the castle. Especially after she became the head of the technological side of Wakanda.

His gaze settled on the jacket Shuri was wearing and his entire mind decided it would be the appropriate time to short-circuit.

It was his black jacket with the silver webbing pattern on the sleeves and around the hem. He did notice that there were some lighter blue spots which he guessed was spills but it somehow didn’t bother him at all.

“Peter?” Shuri waved her hand in front of his face and Zayden coughed and cleared his throat.

He wasn’t even aware that he had spaced out there. God. She looked better in his jacket than he did – a part of him did not want to ask for it back.

“You alright?”

“Yeah.” Zayden nodded, coughing again. “I just, got distracted. School and all.”

Shuri blinked. “Oh, I forgot that you go to school.”

“Well some of us didn’t have the privilege of not needing to go to school.” Zayden said without even thinking.

Shuri’s face shifted to one of annoyance and Zayden stammered out.

“Shit…Sor…Sorry. I didn’t…My brain filter doesn’t work sometimes. I’m sorry, that was uncalled for.”

Her expression softened slightly. “It’s alright.”

Zayden noticed she wanted to say something but didn’t know how to word it. Which he could understand.

“Princess?”

“Why do you hate school so much?” Shuri asked.

That was not the question Zayden was expecting.

“I don’t actually hate school.”

“You could’ve fooled me.”

“Well, I hate being forced to learn about something I can do if I was really interested in it.”

Shuri looked at him, hands still stuffed into the pockets of the jacket. “Well, I think anyone can agree with that.”

Zayden shrugged. “There isn’t really anything else for me to say, Princess.”

“I wished I had gone to school.” Shuri admitted. “The chance of actually interacting with people my age would’ve been a great thing for me growing up. I hated having to grow up so quickly while trying to remain a kid.”

“That’s a good point.” Zayden had to agree.

Despite his fellow classmates ranging from people he liked to disliked, he still liked them all. Even if he saw most people either at each other’s throats or all over each other.

It depended on the time of year and whether or not there were any exams.

“What work do you have to do?” Shuri asked, sounding interested or at least attempting to.

“Nothing, thankfully. At least until exams in a couple of weeks.” Zayden stretched.

_Zayden._

Zayden snapped his gaze around the room and barely noticed Shuri ask him a question, noticing him getting distracted by something else.

Infinity was stood on the balcony.

Her back was to him but he knew she could sense his gaze on her.

She looked over her shoulder at him before fading away.

_Don’t get distracted._

Don’t get distracted by what?

“Peter?”

Zayden looked at Shuri and struggled to smile reassuringly at her. “It’s nothing.”

She did not believe him, Zayden knew he was a terrible liar.

It was at least an attempt.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was meant to be written yesterday but I was in a writing stump so I couldn't bring myself to write this chapter.
> 
> It wasn't the best but I decided to bring in HYDRA a little earlier so it wasn't a jarring transition.

Zayden looked over the words on his paper. Seriously, this essay was driving him up the wall. It had been a long week of essays and reports that needed to be done.

Except this essay had been plaguing him for almost two weeks and he still had another week to work on it.

Karen clicked her claws at him. “Relax, your stress is rising.”

“I can’t handle this essay.”

“You know you need to sleep properly to have a clear head for writing, right?”

Karen sounded so worried and it did make Zayden feel sorry for worrying her, especially since her emotions were so clear meant that she was actually distressed about his current mental state.

He would have to admit that it wasn’t the best.

“I know that, girl.” Zayden sighed. “But I really want to get this essay written long before it’s due so I have more time to revise it.”

“Sounds like a fair game plan but you are going about it the wrong way.” Karen argued. “You have to get some rest, you are not going to properly focus or be able to work. I know you can be active for a much longer time than normal humans but that doesn’t mean that you can go several days on little sleep.”

“Not like I haven’t done it before.”

“That is really dangerous.” Karen muttered. “You sound so much like Tony in that manner if what Friday says is correct.”

Zayden decided to ignore the slight insult to him as he knew who his father was didn’t affect his sleep patterns, he just has a shit sleep schedule.

“Okay, okay.”

Karen perked up slightly, eyes glowing slightly in the low light of his room.

Damn, was his light really that shit? He knew that he could see better than a normal human but honestly wouldn’t he even know the light was lower?

His AI clicked her teeth together. “You were too focused on your essay to notice that fact.”

“Did I say that out loud?”

“No. I can just read minds…Of course, you said that out loud.” Karen hissed.

Zayden rolled his eyes. “Fine, I’ll go to bed.”

“Thank you.” Karen sighed, tail tip twitching.

Zayden sat up fully in his said and stretched out his limbs, hearing them crack from under-use. His mouth opened in a silent yawn, feeling tiredness wash over him.

Man, it was nearing one am and he’d been working on his essay since seven pm.

No wonder Karen was so distressed.

Zayden stood up and rolled his shoulders back, feeling some knots loosening and sighed out in relaxation. That felt much better now that he was focusing on his body and relaxing his muscles.

Karen watched Zayden as he moved towards his bed, her eyes might’ve been inexpressive but they seemed bright in relief that he was paying attention to himself after so many hours of neglect.

Fair enough, really. Zayden can understand that.

Suddenly, Zayden’s entire body tensed. Muscles that were previously relaxed bunched up as his hair stood on end.

Something drawing his attention which caught Karen’s own attention.

“Boss?” Her voice was soft as to not startle him.

Before Zayden could say anything to reassure her that he was fine, a loud explosion ripped through his ears.

While it was quite a distance away, Zayden felt as though it was only a few blocks away from where he lived.

He spun around to face his window, eyes narrowing as he attempted to figure out any visible signs of the explosion. Nothing.

The air was filled with screams and the scent of smoke.

“What was that?” Zayden asked, eyes dancing along the buildings. “Where is it from?”

“I don’t know.” Karen muttered shifting into the eagle that was on top of the apartment complex but voice resonating from his phone. “Should I check it out?”

Zayden nodded. “Go ahead, girl.”

Turning around, Karen’s voice was cut off by his phone ringing. Ned’s ringtone ripping through the stillness of his own room.

“Peter?” Ned asked. “Are you heading towards that explosion?”

“What are you doing up?” Zayden asked, ignoring Ned’s own questions. Ned was his best friend, surely, he’d know the answer without asking him.

“I fell asleep when I got home and woke up like two hours ago. Now answer my question.” Ned pressed.

“What do you think?”

“I just needed clarification.”

Zayden managed to slip on his suit, transferring Ned and Karen’s voices into his headset.

“Is Karen heading there now?”

“Of course I am.” Karen spoke. “I am not a lowly AI.”

Zayden snickered. “Better not let Friday hear you say that.”

“What can she do? Hunt me down?” Karen snarked.

Ned piped up. “Doesn’t she have control over the Iron Man suits?”

Karen said nothing, but it was enough for the teenagers to laugh at her.

“She just has to compensate.” Karen hissed but fell silent.

Zayden knew Karen was not iffy with Friday but focused on the task on hand. Figuring out what had happened was her main focus and everything else could come later. She was rather impulsive like that but focused at the same time on different issues.

Karen’s voice crackled once more. “It’s a building. Terrorist with another bomb he’s threatening to set off and the police can’t get close to the building because it is an active bomb.”

Zayden hissed. “Shit. This complicates things a bit.”

“White or black?” Ned asked, wanting to gain any info he can from Karen so he can input it into a file that has all of the cases like this that Karen has been at.

“White.”

“The police won’t do shit.” Ned muttered, the clicking of his keys sounded in Zayden’s ears. “They’re just gonna label him a disillusioned and someone who never got help with their mental illness.”

“Maybe.” Zayden said. “Sociopathy is a legitimate mental illness.”

“I know that but you know what I mean.”

Yeah.

Ned’s words were true. Zayden felt sick that it was so true.

He’s seen several innocent darker skinned people been falsely accused, even seen some police look at Abraham (who is the nicest and one of the sincerest people) like he is a potential threat.

You know, not like the guy who walked into the mall with a gun out and wolf-whistling and cussing at people and obviously not in the mental state to even be near a gun, yet alone hold one.

Zayden looked to the side upon seeing a slight flash beside him.

Was…Was his eyes playing tricks on him?

It was rare but it did happen.

Or was that a person standing on top of a building that had blood red skin?

Looking back, he saw no one and decided that perhaps it was just a trick of the light from swinging at a high speed.

Zayden landed on one of the buildings nearby and watched the scene, relaying the scene to Ned.

“See anything?” Zayden looked around, craning his neck to properly view as much as he can.

“Well, I have a layout of the building in place.” Ned sent him a layout and Zayden hummed to himself as he viewed the blueprints.

The best part about it, is that it was real time. The destruction was viewed quite clearly and what entrances were blocked.

Now, this is why Ned is his main man.

He was fast when it comes to these things and Zayden would not be able to do as much as he can without him.

“BOSS!” Karen’s voice caused Zayden to jump, not expecting her call. “You aren’t alone here.”

Zayden blinked, confused and could hear Ned’s own confusion at her words.

He turned his gaze down and noticed a faint flicker from behind a window. His eyes widening in surprise at what he saw.

Stephen and Loki working together using their magic to deal with the terrorist.

A smile tugged at his lips and blocked out Ned’s confused questions at what Karen had noticed. His voice dipped lowly. “Well, looks like they can work together.”

“Who?!”

“Stephen Strange and Loki.”

“Wait…Don’t they hate each other?”

“No.” Zayden scoffed. “They just have issues that the other has similar magic to their own. They constantly try to one up another, and honestly Stephen’s girlfriend, Christine, is done with their antics.”

Ned snickered. “I can see how that would be annoying.”

Zayden was about to quip something about how it could be related to people at their school when he yelped and jumped out of the way.

A silver object was flung at his body and struck his arm. Ripping the suit where the blade caught the material.

Well, looks like that has to be fixed up tomorrow or as soon as he has the time.

He glared at the blade, glinting in the light as though taunting him.

“What the fuck?” Zayden hissed.

“Looks like you were caught by him.” Karen _helpfully_ pointed out to an unimpressed vigilante.

“No shit. I never would’ve figured that out on my own.”

He pushed himself up and felt a loud ringing in his ears. Groaning, he reached up and clutching his ears to try and block the ringing, trying to ease his brain, that was suddenly growing painful.

“BOSS!”

“ZAYDEN!”

Zayden looked up just as he saw something coming towards him. Hissing, Zayden wanted to move but felt like his body had shut down and was not responding to what his brain was screaming.

To get away from the threat.

“Spider-Man!”

The piece of the building that had previously been wanting to make Zayden into a squashed spider had been blasted to pieces.

“Spider-Man?” Zayden turned around to see Iron Man in the sky above him. “Are you alright?”

How had he not heard him approaching?

Okay, maybe he was really out of it.

He shook his head. “Yeah. I…I wasn’t actually going to get involved. Karen-“ He snapped his mouth shut.

Tony looked interested but didn’t press it. “Your AI informed you of the situation.”

It was no question but purely a statement.

“Yeah, she’s great.” Zayden said and stood up, despite the shaking in his legs.

Iron Man looked at the building. “What stopped him?”

“Dunno. Magic?” Zayden’s lips twitched upwards into a smirk that was clear in his tone of voice.

Tony looked at him with a covered face but even Zayden could feel his disbelief rolling off him in waves.

“Boss? I have some news.” Friday spoke up, catching their attention.

“Go ahead, Friday.” Tony spoke, voice becoming more serious.

“His name is hidden in files I can’t access just yet; however I have some important information to share. He is a HYDRA agent and the bombs are from a HYDRA base that was supposedly destroyed.”

Zayden felt his blood run cold.

HYDRA?

Again?

Can’t they just leave him and his family alone?

He gritted his teeth, body tensing out of annoyance and anger. Eyes burning holes into the floor of the roof. 

“Spider-Man?” Tony asked. “What-?”

“See ya, Iron Man.” Zayden’s voice was clipped as he leaped off the roof and caught himself on one of his webs.

Anger bubbling through his entire body as he remembered the Red Skinned person, he thought he had seen because of a trick of the light.

Red Skull.

How is he still alive? Didn’t matter, that wasn’t the question.

The questioned that should be asked is;

_What does HYDRA want?_


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter, just giving some extra world building about the Accords in this universe - which i think was the Accords in general but I haven't watched Civil War in like...years so i dunno
> 
> ALSO!!! ENDGAME!!! TRAILER!!! IS!!! AWESOME!!!
> 
> My storyline matches well with that trailer so i am thrilled cause I was worried I was gonna have to alter a bit but nope!!! Everything lines up with the story - except for one thing but you'll see what i mean by that soon (hopefully)

Karen trotted along the desk, tail flicking up into the air as though she was showing off.

Which was most likely.

“Do you have to be boasting about this?” Zayden asked, tapping the hoverboard and leaning back as he studied the power circuit from a distance to make sure he was missing any obvious mistakes.

“What? Can’t I be proud that Shuri likes me?” Karen seemed to smirk but Zayden didn’t bother looking at her.

Zayden grumbled to himself, remembering the exact moment when Shuri realised that Zayden didn’t just have a working AI but fully functional robot forms for her. Despite the fact that some may doubt Karen because of Ultron.

Ultron has affected all AIs across the world.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Wait…Is that a robot?” Shuri asked, turning her gaze to focus on Karen who was still curled up on Zayden’s desk. Hidden from view from literally any other direction.

“Yeah.” Zayden nodded, mentally praying that Karen will remain still and not speak because he was not sure what Shuri’s reaction would be.

“Can it move on its own?” Shuri asked, leaning closer to Karen and Zayden groaned extremely softly to himself.

Karen was going to take offence to be referred to as an ‘it’ even though she really only _sounds_ like a female and has a feminine name. Honestly, she could’ve used male or non-binary pronouns and no-one could argue because really…AIs _don’t_ have genders.

Karen raised her head to look at Shuri, her eyes glinted; emotionless. “I’m a _she_ not an _it_.”

Shuri paused, her own eyes widening in surprise and Karen just snorted.

“What? Cat got your tongue?”

Shuri gaped. “You are…Wow!” She almost squealed which snapped Zayden’s head to look at the pair of them. “Peter! This is awesome!”

Zayden paused and felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment as Shuri studied Karen with an inquisitive look. Murmuring to herself about what she liked about Karen’s design and what she would change.

Karen growled lowly. “I like the robots I can inhabit, thank you very much.”

Shuri paused and looked between Zayden and Karen, the former of which was not looking at her. “I didn’t mean anything about it. I just say that just because something works doesn’t mean it can’t be improved upon.”

Karen didn’t stop growling until Shuri pulled away. “Well, your input isn’t needed, you know. I trust my boss who knows what I need than someone who doesn’t.”

“I-“

“Karen, knock it off.” Zayden spoke lowly. “Shuri didn’t mean to insult you.”

Karen huffed. “She insulted you, not me. I don’t like it when people insult my boss.”

Shuri frowned and looked uneasy but Zayden waved her off. “Don’t worry. Karen’s code isn’t perfect but I’ve grown used to it so I won’t bother changing it. She is extremely sensitive because the robots weren’t built from the best materials.”

“No, no. She looks good.” Shuri nodded. “I like it.”

Zayden glanced at Shuri and smiled warmly at her. “Thanks, princess.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“You insulted her.” Zayden pointed out, waving a screwdriver at her. “I should check your code to make sure you are still focusing on morals.”

Karen sat down beside him, ears twitching. “Insulting people doesn’t mean I am automatically not focusing on morals. I focus on laws, you know that.”

Zayden stretched. “I know.”

A yell sounded from above them, catching everyone’s attention on the floor. Zayden snapped his head up at the same time Karen did, her eyes dimming in light an indication of concern.

“What is going on up there?” Zayden asked, moving his head towards Karen.

“Do you want me to check it out?” Karen asked already stretching and trotting across the desk, looking back at him.

“Yeah.”

Karen leaped off the desk and trotted towards the door, keeping out of sight as much of possible from the other interns and workers on the floor. The door opened, obviously showing that Friday was keeping an eye on them and decided to be helpful.

“Zay?” Zayden turned around, not surprised to see Tina there.

“Oh, hey, Tina.”

Tina raised an eyebrow, indicating that she was waiting for Zayden to continue talking.

“You know what is going on up there?” Zayden made a motion to the floor above them.

“Yeah, I also know that Harley and Shuri are trapped up there with the adults.” Tina nodded.

Zayden looked down. “Maybe Karen would get them down here.”

“Dunno, that’s her choice.” Tina shrugged. “But Hope van Dyne has arrived and she realised that Scott had sided with Steve Rogers because he’s Captain America.”

“That doesn’t really explain the yelling.”

“Hope is just furious that Scott would side with Steve despite not knowing what was actually going on. Not really blackmailed, just mislead.”

Zayden frowned. “Would he have been on Tony’s side?”

“Yeah, he didn’t want to get into trouble with the law again and he got into trouble with the law again.” Tina huffed. “Understandably, Hope was, no _is_ , pissed at him.”

“That…Makes sense.” Zayden agreed.

Zayden’s phone lit up with a message from Karen.

_Tony and Ross are arguing about the Accords._

_Ross wants to limit the Avengers even more but the UN isn’t budging and wants Tony to side with him._

“Hm?” Tina raised an eyebrow as she leaned towards Zayden.

“Ross wants to change the Accords.” Zayden hissed. “He has no right to mess around with it. The UN is only going to listen to an Avengers to make amends to what is already written.”

“Pfft.” Tina snorted. “Ross is a power-hungry guy who doesn’t want to admit that he forced the Accords to be put into place earlier than needed.”

Zayden paused and looked up at Tina. “What?”

Tina sighed. “I forgot you don’t know.” She pondered on her words for a few seconds. “Ross wanted to throw all the Avengers into jail or something similar at least, but the UN didn’t want that because the world still needs the Avengers for any alien invasions. So the UN placed the first amendment of the Accords on the table and promised that they’d alter the conditions if the Avengers have any issues but still needed some limitations on what they can and cannot interfere with.”

“So the Accords were ‘finished’ quickly to ensure that the Earth’s protectors would not be in jail?” Zayden asked, wanting clarification.

“Pretty much.” Tina nodded.

Zayden frowned. He knew they weren’t perfect but the UN was trying to ensure that the Avengers didn’t go power-hungry. They were created because of the fear that governments would be too power-hungry and needed their own governance.

_Boss. Tony has said that he’ll try and keep the government off of Hope and her father._

Zayden and Tina noticed the message and shared a look between each other.

 

~~~~~~~~~~

Karen grumbled from Zayden’s hoodie. “Shuri and Harley didn’t want to follow me.”

“Don’t be harsh on them.” Zayden argued as he checked to make sure he hadn’t left anything. That would be the worst thing to do especially since he wasn’t sure when he’d be returning to the tower. “Curiosity is a dangerous thing after all.”

“I told them that I’d tell them what was going on but they didn’t care.”

Zayden held back a laugh at how fussy his AI was acting.

Man, he forgot how she could act sometimes.

“Peter, leaving already?” Zayden looked up and saw Pepper as she waved goodbye to Sasha, her assistant.

“Yeah, May would be annoyed if I am away from home for any longer.” Zayden said, standing up. He really didn’t want to anger his aunt, especially since she is running on a shorter fuse than normal.

It was worrying but Zayden figured it was just her work stressing her out.

“Fair enough.” Pepper nodded before sighing. “I came to tell you that the next two weeks we won’t be able to have any interns within the premises.”

Karen turned her head and stared at Pepper with a curious expression but said nothing.

“Why not?” Zayden asked, even though he knew why.

Pepper blinked. “I can’t say why.”

“That’s alright.” Zayden shifted and held his bag in his arms. “It’s alright. Can you tell Mr. Stark that I’m almost done with my hoverboard? I haven’t been able to tell him myself.”

“Very well.” Pepper watched as Zayden made his way to the door. “Goodbye, Peter.”

Zayden waved at Pepper over his shoulder.

“Ms. Potts!” Zayden heard Sasha’s call and decided to linger slightly to hear what she had to say.

“Miss. Holland. What is it?”

“I have heard someone say something while I was on my way to my office.”

Sasha and Pepper were already walking away but Zayden could still hear their voices as clear as day.

“What kind of things, you know I don’t listen to rumours.” Pepper sounded annoyed that Sasha was considering rumours.

“No. No. It’s nothing about that at all.” Sasha sounded as though she was struggling with words. Zayden could agree that words were difficult. “It’s more about what you and Mr. Stark will do with Harley. People are wondering if you are going to make him your heir like many already assume.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Sasha. Do you know what I think about assumptions?”

“I know, but it is a valid concern.”

Pepper’s sigh was barely audible.

“I know but that is…Not something I want to worry about just yet. Not with the Accords.”

“I…”

“Do I make myself clear, Sasha?”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Sasha’s voice dropped off after Pepper’s clipped tone.

Zayden looked at the ground with a hardened expression.

“Boss?”

“Zayden.”

Zayden shifted his gaze to Tina who was leaning against the wall.

“It’ll be fine. Just trust it.”

Zayden muttered. “The future can be changed with a snap of your fingers, Tina.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some more Decathlon team hangouts!!
> 
> I want to write more about these guys cause I'm basing them off my group of friends and it is so fun to write them.

Flames danced around his hands as they clenched and unclenched, fingers twitching as Zayden stretched them out in front of him.

He moved his hands closer to each other as watched as the flames contained themselves within his hands.

It was weird and mesmerizing to watch.

“Zayden.”

The simple word from Loki caused Zayden to jump out of his skin, the contained fire exploded in front of him. The heat licked across his arms and upper chest slightly, not enough to cause serious damage but still enough to leave a mark for a little while.

It was worse that the scar from the wound the blade inflicted on him a few days ago still remained on his skin.

The flames brushed against the wound which made Zayden flinch as the sudden searing pain.

Ignoring it, he turned around to look at Loki. “Loki?”

Loki leaned against the doorframe as he stood with Stephen and Wong. “I am joining Thor and Val in helping with Asgard. Bruce can join us if he wants.”

He looked behind him at where Zayden suspected that Bruce was located as he probably worked on something to do with Thanos. Zayden didn’t really know because they didn’t inform him on anything so he was really just speculating at this point.

“And?” Zayden lowered his hands and stared at the burn marks on his arm, quietly grumbling about having to cover them up to avoid suspicion.

“Wong and I are having a discussion with the other Masters of Mystic Arts.” Stephen stated simply. “So, it would be best if you weren’t around just to avoid suspicion.”

Zayden snickered. “Is that why Loki is fucking off?”

Loki stiffened and growled. “I am not.”

Wong intervened before a fight could break out once again between the pair. “Loki is deemed a threat by the Masters of Mystic Arts because he helped bring the Chitauri here. Whether he really wanted to or not doesn’t mean anything.”

Stephen nodded. “We are going to discuss with them about Thanos.”

“Which you aren’t telling me.” Zayden pointed out.

Loki hissed. “You are a child. You shouldn’t be worrying about Thanos.”

Zayden wanted to argue that Thanos was going to be after Earth sooner or later and therefore would directly be attacking his home. Shouldn’t he be aware of what was going on involving Thanos?

He could argue that, but he wouldn’t get anywhere and Zayden was also aware that they wouldn’t keep him in the dark if they really couldn’t. They wanted him to still be a kid and while it pissed him off, he couldn’t be too annoyed by it.

“Okay, okay.” He held his hands up. “I won’t press anything. I’ll just go now and hang out with my friends.”

“Like you should.” Wong agreed.

Zayden moved to the front door and Wong followed him, falling into step beside him.

“Wong?” Zayden asked, eyes settling on Wong who seemed as though he was lost in his thoughts.

“Don’t be annoyed. We want to protect you as much as we can.” Wong said simply. “You’re a teenager and we are keeping you from your friends.”

Zayden tried to force a smile but it didn’t work. “It’s alright.”

Wong placed a hand on Zayden’s shoulder. “Look, take it easy and don’t bite off more than you can chew. If Stark is gonna find out that you are his son and we’ve let you get into danger then he will have our heads.”

Zayden huffed out a soft laugh before saying ‘bye’ to them and leaving out the door to make his way back home. He wasn’t sure if he should or perhaps, he should go and visit his friends, hey he can always figure out their location.

His phone began to ring loudly once he finished that thought and checking it, he chuckled to himself. “Well, you think of someone and they message you, huh? Speak of the devil and he will arrive.”

“Hey, Ned, what’s up?”

“Everyone else is coming over to my place to binge watch some movies on Netflix. Wanna join?”

“Sure! I’ll head over now!”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden flung himself onto the couch, causing Cindy to screech and use one of the pillows to smack his face.

“Oi! Watch it Parker!”

Zayden just laughed as he fended off the offending pillow. “I am watching it.”

The others just pointedly ignored their actions, as it was pretty much a typical Tuesday for the two of them. Who cares if people thought they seemed to be flirting. Neither liked each other in that way anyway.

However, even Zayden was not able to hide from Michelle and her creepily astute gaze.

“Hey, Peter. Are those burn marks?”

Zayden paused and looked at MJ who pointed towards his arms. He looked down at the faint burn marks that still lingered upon his skin.

This would typically worry him, because often he wouldn’t have an excuse for the wounds he had. The blade scar was easily enough explained away.

“Yeah, burns from steam.” Zayden explained. “I stayed too close to the stove when I removed the lid.”

MJ did not look as though she believed him but had no evidence that Zayden was lying to them. So she shrugged it off like everyone else did.

Though, Sally asked him why he thought it would be a good idea to be around a stove when steam was involved.

“When do I ever think things through?” Zayden asked instead which just made her roll her eyes.

“Good point.”

“GUYS!” Ned cried. “Come on, we are here to watch movies not criticise Pete’s life choices.”

“Can we critique the movie though?” Charles asked as though he wasn’t planning on doing that anyway.

Ned looked at Charles and seemed to already be regretting allowing everyone to crash at his place for a few hours. Well, he would regret this but will do it all over again on a later date.

Do not ask Zayden how they managed to agree to watch Zootopia even though all of them would be making some outlandish commentary on the entire premise of the plot.

“It is the conspiracy that the government wanted to target African-American communities.”

“Night-Howlers…They really wanted you to think it was the wolves.”

“I _wish_ New York looked like this. Where are all the homeless people and people taking drugs?”

“Night-Howlers are cocaine. It’s just a weird alternative that makes them act rabid as well.”

“Does it contain the rabies strain or do they just not call it rabies in their world?”

“Is it really that simple making the serum?”

“Have you not been paying attention to Chemistry?”

“I have but if I can’t blow things up then what is the point?”

“Fair point.”

Zayden rested his head against his arms, allowing his eyes to drift shut while subconsciously leaning ever so slightly against Cindy who barely even noticed it.

He could feel his friends often glance at him in concern. They were all teenagers, however, and none of them had good sleeping schedules so they couldn’t even tell him to sleep better. Otherwise they would all be having to take that advice.

Zayden shifted, feeling Cindy’s elbow digging into his stomach and he cracked open an eye to glare lightly at her.

Cindy shot him a look. “You are the one sleeping against me, mister. Don’t be annoyed.”

Zayden grumbled. “Don’t move then.”

“You are the one moving.”

“No, I’m not.”

Abe slammed his hands down onto the table, making MJ jump back as she almost dropped her slice of pizza.

“Do. You. Mind?” Her voice was low and even which made Abe flinch back and he slightly cower under her gaze.

“Please don’t eat me.” Abe acted out a whimper.

“Please,” MJ snorted and waved her hand, “I have taste.”

Abe reeled back in betrayal. “I am _delicious_ , thank you very much.”

“You’re not welcome.” Sally quipped in before MJ could lunge across the table and strangle him which she almost always did during the meetings and hangouts.

Zayden chuckled to himself as Cindy cheered MJ on in acting out on her murderous intent towards their friend. Poor Abe. Even if he did bring it upon himself.

His eyes flickered to the large apartment window, giving him view of the surrounding apartment buildings. It made him feel a little jealous, because Ned did live in a pretty good area of New York. They all did and even in the area of Queens that Zayden and May lived wasn’t that bad of Queens.

Something caught his attention, almost pulling himself away from Cindy but considering she radiated heat he didn’t feel that bothered to do so.

This was New York. Privacy was not a thing people understood.

It was a wonder how no-one figured out that he is Spider Man.

But this was not a person.

Their back was too Zayden’s gaze and he had to push himself up slightly to look at this figure, trying to figure out what exactly it was.

It wasn’t Infinity but held a similar vibe to them.

However, when the figure turned to look at Zayden, their eyes narrowed slightly and in the blink of an eye later they were gone.

The balcony they were standing on was now vacant which left Zayden really confused.

He was sure he hadn’t imagine them after all.

“Pete?” Cindy asked, turning to face him. “What ya looking at?”

She tried to follow his gaze but of course she wasn’t going to see anything. He shrugged slightly and fell back against her, she let out a soft ‘oof’ as he let his weight fall directly onto her.

“Just because you are light doesn’t mean you aren’t heavy.” Cindy hissed which only made him move to go easy on her.

Hey, she deserved it after having to deal with his shit after all.

“Look, I’m tellin’ ya. Tony Stark is part of the Illuminati.” Abe folded his arms and nodding, looking very set in his decision.

“How did you get to that conclusion?” Sally asked, leaning towards him wanting to see a flaw in his logic.

“He’s famous and rich.” Abe explained. “And he’s influential, that fits in all of the criteria for being part of the Illuminati.”

“But that’s the only criteria that we _know_.” Ned argued.

“If it even exists.” MJ muttered.

Zayden spoke up. “Well, we don’t have any real proof that it _doesn’t_ exist either.”

MJ just looked at him as though she knew he was going to side with the possibility that the Illuminati exists.

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden sighed in relief when he saw his apartment block in his view as he made his way down the street, not particularly worried about the low light of twilight.

May would definitely be worried so he’ll have to make sure she doesn’t try to stop him from hanging out with his friends.

The music in his ears distracted him from his surroundings and on a normal day this would be fine. He often got around not paying attention to the people around him just because he could feel where they were and often judged where they were going to go with great accuracy.

It was also helpful when it comes to navigating school hallways.

Personal space is not a factor in school.

However, that only relates to _people_.

Zayden’s shoulder came into contact with another body and he snapped his head to the side to try and figure out why he didn’t realise he was alone but faltered.

Their eyes were like the cosmos and their entire aura was dangerous.

His shoulders stiffened and his mind tried to scream at him to run yet he didn’t move.

The figure looked him over, snarled slightly before storming off and disappearing into a crowd of people that Zayden was not even aware he had passed.

Zayden shook his head before continuing down the street.

“Boss.” A second later Karen appeared from an alley, trotting up to him.

“Hey, Karen.” Zayden crouched to pick her up, ignoring her claws grazing the burns.

“It’s already dark, you should’ve been home a while ago.” She knew he could take care of himself but it felt relieving to know that she was worried.

“I know. I was with my friends and we lost track of time.” Zayden explained but his Ai merely huffed at the explanation.

 _Also_ , Zayden glanced back in the direction the figure had gone, _who was that exactly?_


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shuri and Zayden mostly for this chapter - and from now on the story catches back up to the original story plan

Zayden’s phone flickered on, the sound of high-pitched sirens rang through Zayden’s room, making Zayden jerk awake in surprise.

His head snapped towards his phone, feet kicking out at Karen who hissed at him before realising he was flustered and freaking out. The blankets tangling around him as he tried to reach out towards his phone to stop it from screaming at him.

“WARNING! WARNING!”

Zayden blearily noticed that it was an alarm from Friday which he figured Karen installed herself so she could keep in contact with the other AI.

For situations such as this.

A warning.

More specifically;

A bomb warning at Stark tower.

Karen watched as Zayden’s senses kicked into over drive as he pulled on his suit. “Boss? What is it?”

Zayden looked at her as he held his mask in his hands. “A bomb warning at Stark Tower.”

“Oh, Friday sent the warning?” Karen asked, leaping onto the table as Zayden pulled the mask over his face. “Aren’t you really tired though, boss?”

“That warning woke me right up.”

He could tell the second that Karen had shifted robotic forms. The glowing eyes of the cat robot had dimmed down and even Zayden could hear the wings flapping of the eagle robot high above the buildings.

Zayden perched on the window sill. “Give me a reading of the tower, Karen.”

“Right away, boss.”

Zayden leaped out the window and caught himself on a web, swinging through the apartment complexes. He had done this specific route so many times that he could actually do it with his eyes closed.

He would never advise it to anyone though.

Bad memories of doing that.

The tower glinted in the light as smoke billowed into the sky, sirens ripping through the air. Zayden felt bile rising up in his throat as he stared at the building. Landing on the roof of a neighbouring building once again.

“Boss!” Karen called. “I have a life form recorded!”

Zayden caught the images that Karen sent to him of the current insides of the tower. Man this tower really wasn’t having the best run this year with the recent attack on it only about three weeks ago.

The scar was not fading and a constant reminder of that night.

Zayden looked around and noticed a broken window that was so convenient. A trap? Probably. A way into the building? Most definitely.

He leaped off the building and managed to catch himself on one of the many ledges he had found during some of his unsolicited trips to the tower on the nights or days he really just wanted to explore.

Shifting his gaze he noticed he was right above the window. Swinging down, he let himself slide into the building and let his gaze shift around the room he found himself inside.

It was not a room he recognised but he knew that not everyone was allowed in every single room of the tower.

This was risky because there was an actual bomb on sight. Zayden would have to keep out of sight and ensure that no-one heard him either.

He made his way through the tower as much as he could to get closer to the top of the tower. Following the yells and laughter from the terrorist on the above floors. His eyes narrowed as he wondered who exactly was in the tower with him cause it definitely seemed like there were people with him.

“Boss.” Zayden perked up at Karen’s words in his ears. “Bucky and Shuri are with him. He is a HYDRA agent as well.”

“Seriously? What is up with HYDRA recently?” Zayden asked, as he sped up in his movements.

This agent wouldn’t have ensure he had Bucky if he didn’t know the ‘code’ to switch Bucky’s brain. It would be too risky otherwise for them to pull off.

Seriously? Also the princess of Wakanda? Are you trying to anger Wakanda?

Zayden grumbled to himself before muttering to Karen. “Inform Iron Man that I’m inside.”

“Very well, boss.”

Zayden took a deep breath as he tried to steady his racing nerves. He really only had once chance at getting to Bucky and Shuri before he was noticed by the agent. Perhaps the agent already knew he was inside.

That would make sense, logically.

He pushed a door open ever so slightly, eyes adjusting to the low light within it. Even if his eyes didn’t focus, he would be lying if he didn’t recognise the scent that was so Shuri.

“Princess.” He hissed as he slipped his way towards where she was.

“Spidey.” She frowned and then looked at where her gauntlets were, trapped behind something. “I need your help. Keep an eye out for the agent.”

“Couldn’t you have done this earlier?” He asked, moving so he had full view of all exit and entrance points of the room.

“Yes, but with my back turned I couldn’t be certain on whether or not the guy was coming down here.” Shuri explained as she immediately got to getting her weapons.

Zayden raised an eyebrow even if she couldn’t see it. “How did he even manage to get the jump on you?”

“He knows the code words for Bucky and used them against me.” Shuri stated, a soft click indicating she had successfully gotten to her gauntlets. “I am no match against an enhanced human.”

Zayden looked behind him to look as Shuri shifted the gauntlets so they rested comfortably on her arms.

“Your gauntlets…?”

“I took them off because I felt like I didn’t need to wear them.”

“Fair enough.” He grinned at her, hoping his voice showed it. “Shall we show him to not mess with us?”

Shuri seemed surprised but smirked herself. “Let’s.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden noticed Karen fly past one of the windows, barley giving him or Shuri a glance.

He looked at Shuri who seemed to notice the robot as well, her eyes widening.

“Focus, Princess. We can’t let our guard down.” Zayden lightly teased to recapture her attention on what they need to do.

Shuri flickered her gaze towards Zayden and frowned. “I was still focused. You are the one with enhanced senses, certainly that would keep you on your toes.”

Zayden didn’t bother informing her that he has been caught off guard several times when he relied solely on his senses instead of actually paying attention to his surroundings.

Hey, he wanted her to trust him.

“Boss, Black Panther and Iron Man are coming up.”

Zayden murmured very quietly so only Karen could hear him. “Tell them that Barnes is most likely mind controlled.”

“Tony will not like that.”

“The Princess and I will keep on our toes.” Zayden reassured his semi-worried AI.

Shuri stared at him with a critical expression. “Who are you talking to?”

“Myself.”

She made a face but didn’t press the issue as it there was no point for discussing that particular thing. Zayden hoped Shuri wouldn’t bring it up again, considering she already met Karen and would put two-and-two together in an instant.

They crouched behind a door, hearing talking from within the room.

Shuri gritted her teeth. “This guy is getting on my nerves.”

“Don’t worry, he’ll be dealt with.” Zayden muttered. “We’ll need to find a way around the room without bringing attention to ourselves.”

“So going in through this door is asking to get killed.”

“Well, asking for the bomb to go off. If we are lucky, Barnes has probably snapped back to his right mind without the HYDRA agent’s awareness.”

“If we are lucky?”

Zayden sweat-dropped. “Well, probably not a good thing for me to be here. I am not a lucky person.”

“Seriously?”

“Let’s just figure out a way into the room.” Zayden said, moving away from the door.

Shuri hummed. “There is another door into the room. Many rooms in the tower have at least two entrances. However, he might have a gaze on both doors if Bucky is under his control.”

Zayden nodded. “We have to play it carefully in that case. Let’s say that Barnes is still controlled and is watching both doors, how fast would he get to either of us before HYDRA figure out and before I can incapacitate Barnes?”

“How fast would you be able to do that on a non-controlled Barnes?”

“Give or take about ten seconds. Especially if I can’t see him straight away. It might even be shorter, closer to three if I am on full high alert.”

Shuri and Zayden fell silent as they looked at the other door they found themselves at.

Shuri spoke softly. “What kind of bomb is it?”

“No idea.”

“If we can take down Barnes so he is out of the way, how fast will you pick up on where the bomb is?”

“Fairly quickly.”

“If we can do it without being noticed…”

“Then we can probably dismantle or at least turn the bomb off.”

Zayden grinned, feeling proud that he and Shuri were beginning to work well together. She didn’t know who he was but he felt relieved that he could know for certain that he can trust Shuri.

“Well, what plan do you come up with, Princess?” Zayden asked, voice lilting in a tease.

Shuri looked at him. “I thought you were the planner? Give me an idea of what I should do.”

Zayden felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment and shock.

“Okay, so…”

~~~~~~~~~~

The door clicked open and Barnes snapped his head to the side to figure out who was entering the room but before he could even move, something slammed into his face. Barnes stumbled back and felt his body stick to the wall, the webs too difficult for even him to break out of.

“Sorry, mate.” Zayden hissed quietly to him as he and Shuri walked passed Barnes who’s eyes narrowed at the pair of them.

Shuri looked around and Zayden nudged her. “What, Spidey?”

“There.” He pointed out to the bomb that was hidden in the corner.

“Godzilla called, it wanted it’s Nuclear Bomb back.” Shuri murmured and Zayden lightly snickered.

It definitely seemed reminiscent of the bomb at the end of Godzilla that the humans wanted to use to kill the MUTOs.

“Let’s get to it without being noticed.” Zayden murmured.

“He’ll notice us on the ground.” Shuri pointed out.

Zayden leaned towards her. “How much do you trust me?”

“I do.”

Zayden crouched down and motioned his chin to his back. “Get on.”

Shuri seemed hesitant but pushed past it to climb onto his back, trusting that he’ll be able to keep both of them on the wall and out of sight from the agent’s eyes. That was the main thing.

It was uncomfortable for Zayden as he was not used to the extra weight on his back. However, Zayden could make it work as he adjusted himself on the wall, in the shadows to keep him and Shuri out of sight.

“How much time do we have left on the bomb?” She whispered, Zayden had to ignore the puff of air on his neck.

“Dunno.” Zayden made his way slowly towards the bomb, mainly because he wasn’t sure if his feet would slip even though he knew that wouldn’t happen.

Plus, moving quickly would make it more likely for them to be caught.

Humans are more attracted to fast moving objects after all.

“Boss.” Karen hissed in his ear and Shuri seemed to hear her voice as well. “Whatever you are doing, making it quick.”

Shuri scowled. “Is that _Karen_?”

“Can we focus?” Zayden asked, not wanting to answer her question.

Her fingers dug into his shoulders slightly as a warning. “This isn’t over, Parker.”

Zayden bit back a groan at her comment. Shit. His perfectly hidden secrets. Of course he knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep anything from her.

The truth always is revealed after all.

“Boss?”

“Shuri and I are going to ensure the bomb is turned off and once that happens, we’ll tell you and they can move in.”

“Yes, boss.”

Zayden dropped silently to the ground, crouching and allowing Shuri to climb off his back.

Shuri and Zayden looked the bomb over and quickly got the work. Silently working on figuring out how to turn it off without bringing attention to themselves.

Zayden cursed quietly and quickly told Karen to ensure that the agent kept his gaze on the windows and not what was happening behind him. Also informing her that Barnes was in fact controlled at the moment.

A loud spark echoed around them, making Zayden and Shuri curse.

However…It also caught unwanted attention.

“YOU!”

“Fuck.” Zayden hissed. “Karen, now would be a good time.”

The agent pointed a gun at them and Zayden placed himself in front of Shuri.

Just before the trigger could be pulled, the glass shattered behind him, T’Challa tackling him to the ground. The agent attempted to target T’Challa but ended up shooting at Shuri and Zayden.

Zayden yanked Shuri out of the way, not seeing any other way of keeping her out of harm’s way.

There was a strangled noise and Zayden looked over to see Tony and T’Challa keeping the agent down. He launched himself at them but T’Challa reacted quickly.

One minute the agent had flung himself at T’Challa with the same mindset of a hunting predator, the next he was on the ground with a piece of metal sticking out of his chest.

Tony looked at the two. “Are you alright?”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden leaned against the wall, after returning from changing out of his suit and rushing back to where everyone was.

As an intern, they allowed him close but not too close.

Shuri met his gaze and nodded to a secluded area, making her way towards it first. Zayden looked around and followed, making sure no-one noticed him and the Princess going to a private area.

Just to talk.

Even if his mind wandered slightly.

“Princess?” Zayden asked, looking at her. “What is it?”

She didn’t turn around to face him. “I should’ve realised that would be the reason you have an AI.”

He winced. “Yeah…That…Wasn’t why she was created.”

Shuri looked back at him with a curious expression.

“I wanted to see if I could make an AI.” Zayden explained. “That happened like a year before I became Spiderman.”

“Became Spiderman?”

“Yeah, radioactive spider bit me and my DNA was altered even though there is no proof that can actually happen.” Zayden shrugged. “But it is beneficial so I’m not gonna complain.”

Shuri hummed but nudged Zayden. “I won’t tell anyone.”

Zayden smiled at her. “Thanks, Princess.”

“You should probably call me Shuri otherwise people will raise their eyebrows.”

“I am just being polite.”

“I am telling you that you can…” Shuri paused and her eyes widened. “You…” She raised her finger at him, eyes narrowing slightly. “Don’t say anything about one of our previous interactions during the first bomb.”

Zayden felt his blood leave his entire being. Oh shit. He momentarily forgot that Shuri would remember that meeting.

“I wont say anything.” Zayden stammered, trying to recover and keep Shuri off his back.

She grumbled and looked away when Zayden also ducked his head. “I’m still incredibly thankful for it, Spidey. Just so you know,” Zayden looked confused, “I am not giving your jacket back.”

“It looks better on you then me.” Zayden blurted out without thinking.

Shuri smirked lightly. “Well, that confirms you watch me.”

 _FUCK!_ Zayden’s face was fully reddened as he stammered and rubbed the back of his neck. He really screwed up with that.

Shuri leaned towards him and whispered to him. “Thank you for not treating me like some damsel in distress back there.”

“You could kick my butt if I tried that.”

“Well, I’m glad you know that.”

Zayden did not know what Shuri was going to do but honestly, he was not going to complain with anything that happens.

“Princess Shuri. Peter Parker.”

Zayden momentarily flinched at the call of his name.

They turned to see Rhodey standing a few metres away.

“There you two are. T’Challa is looking for you Shuri.” Rhodey said, eyes flicking between Shuri and Zayden and seemed highly amused. “You better not let him catch the two of you looking so close.”

“Peter is my friend; can’t I talk with my friend?” Shuri asked, stepping away from Zayden slightly.

“You can but T’Challa is going to freak out if you don’t meet back up with him soon.”

Shuri sighed and nodded. “Fine, fine.” She smiled at Zayden. “I’ll talk to you, later, Peter.”

Shuri walked away from them and Zayden had to rip his gaze from Shuri. He saw Rhodey look amused at him.

“Tone down the love eyes.” Rhodey laughed.

Zayden blushed and bit the inside of his cheek, looking away. “That isn’t true.”

“Too bad it is very true.”

Zayden looked back at Rhodey from the corner of his eyes.

“What was that conversation about?” Rhodey asked, changing the tone of the conversation.

“It was about what happened. I was worried about her.”

The older male hummed. “I…I could’ve sworn you flinched when I called your name.”

Zayden paused, looking down. “I wasn’t expecting you to show up.”

“Then why don’t you say that facing me? It’s easy to lie if you aren’t looking at someone.”

Zayden gulped knowing that whatever Rhodey wanted to talk to him about was something that he wouldn’t be able to get away from. This was a conversation that Zayden feared.

If he knew anything about Rhodey, it was that he must already know who he is and just wants clarification.

Zayden looked at Rhodey, eyes focusing on the adult. “And?”

“Your eyes.” Rhodey spoke, seemingly just realising that Zayden’s eyes were not brown like previously thought. “They-“

“Are green. So?”

“Mary and Richard didn’t have brown eyes.”

Zayden frowned. Well, this was going to go downhill really quickly.

So, he did the one thing he knew to do.

Keep his mouth shut.

“Why would you consider my parents do be anyone but them?”

“It doesn’t line up.” Rhodey pointed out. “Your hair is too light as well.”

Zayden stepped back and growled out slightly but firmly kept the sounds down. “I really don’t know what you want to know from me. Considering I don’t have to say anything.”

Rhodey shook his head. “I…I don’t want to push you away.”

“Well, you don’t need to bring me closer.” Zayden hissed. “After all, you aren’t a direct part of my life anymore.”

Zayden snapped his mouth shut, eyes widening and his entire body stiffened.

“What?”

“I said nothing.”

“Tell me, Peter.”

Zayden shook his head. He had said too much. Seriously, when pressed he really didn’t have any control over his mind-mouth filter.

Rhodey leaned back and frowned. “Peter…”

“My name isn’t Peter!” Zayden hissed, voice raising slightly but keeping the volume down.

Rhodey just froze, eyebrows furrowing. Before realisation settled onto his face.

“Zayden?”

Zayden ducked his head and brushed past him. Rhodey’s gaze followed him but really not making Zayden want to hang around and talk.

“Peter?” Shuri asked when he approached them.

“I’m good.” He lied but felt thankful that Shuri didn’t press it.

“You sure? You look shaken.” Harley asked, surprising Zayden as he wasn’t aware that he was even around in the first place.

Zayden shook his head. “I…It’s nothing really.”

Harley wanted to say something but kept his mouth shut. “Oh, okay.”

Zayden looked at Shuri and smiled weakly when she seemed doubtful. “I am fine.”

Zayden looked behind him to see Rhodey walking up to talk with Tony and Pepper. He hoped that he was going to keep it a secret until Zayden himself was ready to say it.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first two scenes are flashbacks to the first week of Zayden's internship at Stark Industries - Also first meeting of Tina and Harley, and technically second meeting of Tony

__

_“You know you should really watch where you are going.” Zayden looked up to see someone standing in front of him, arms folded._

_Zayden recoiled back and kept his voice even. “I was just trying to find a room.”_

_“Which one?”_

_“The room where the interns are meant to be in.” Zayden explained, hoping that the guy would let him pass and carry on down the hall. “I know it’s on this floor.”_

_“I don’t know you.”_

_Zayden stiffened at the accusatory tone directed at him. “I…I-I’m a new intern. I was selected about a month ago.”_

_He didn’t really know why he was so nervous. This was someone who was younger than him, his senses informed him of that fact._

_“Name?”_

_“Peter Parker.”_

_“Oh…I know that name.” The guy nodded but his expression was still sour. “I’m not an intern yet somehow you got chosen.”_

_“You know Stark doesn’t want you to have an unfair advantage to everyone else.” An unknown voice rumbled through the air._

_Zayden and the guy turned their heads to see a beautiful female walking towards them, her eyes were an unnatural purple-blue colour that stood out against her darker skin. Zayden was taken aback by it, it seemed ethereal and stunning as she strode towards them with a sense of purpose._

_Her eyes glinted at Zayden. “Hello, Peter Parker. Mr Stark told me to come and collect you, worried that you’d lose your way here.”_

_“Tina, I could’ve taken him there.”_

_“And gotten side-tracked?” Tina raised an eyebrow. “Come on, Harley. He’s a new intern and you’d probably take him to Mr Stark and Ms Potts to see that he is in fact an actual intern.”_

_“How do you know that?”_

_“Mr Stark came to me to inform me to keep an eye on Peter here, he had personally seen Peter himself and chose him because of his skills in robotics.”_

_“Robotics?” Harley asked, gazing at Zayden from the corner of his eye._

_“Yeah, what’s wrong with that?” Zayden’s annoyance began to flare up inside him._

_Tina stepped between them and shot Harley a stern look. “Come on, Harley. Back down. Mr Stark sees all new interns personally himself.”_

_“I’m just confused that he chose someone younger than me to be an intern. I thought he didn’t chose interns at that age.” Harley started to protest._

_“Older.”_

_“What?” Harley looked confused and Tina sighed in exasperation._

_“Peter here is older than you, Harley. Relax, you are still Mr Stark’s precious child.” The last part was almost a sneer._

_Zayden raised an eyebrow. “Precious child?” That hit a sore note inside Zayden, even though he tried his best to squash it._

_Tina place her hand on Zayden’s back and pushed him forward and down the hall. “Never mind that, Peter. Let’s get you introduced to the other interns. They are all bubbling with excitement to see who the newest member of our ratbag group is.”_

_Zayden glanced over his shoulder to see Harley scowling at him before he turned on his heel and stormed off, entering the elevator and vanishing from sight._

_“Don’t mind him, Zayden.” Tina’s voice was a soft murmur near his ear._

_Zayden snapped his head around to stare at Tina who didn’t seem bothered by his wide-eyed expression. Her gaze was focused on what was in front of them, not even giving him a glance._

_“My name is Peter-“_

_“Don’t try and bullshit me, Zayden.” Tina turned her head and her gaze was hard. “I know who you are, how I know is difficult to explain but I’ll say this once. You can trust me, I’m not about to tell the entire world who you are. I know more about you than you know about yourself.”_

_That was daunting or anything._

_“Now, time to introduce you to everyone.” Tina pushed the door open that they had stopped in front of._

_~~~~~~~~~~_

_“Can you please move?” Zayden asked as he looked up at Harley with a slightly irritated expression on his face._

_It had been an entire week and Zayden had done a great job at avoiding Harley while he was at the tower. He had to pat himself on the back for managing to do that – relying heavily on Tina if he didn’t want to bother Friday._

_Which was majority of the time._

_Harley snorted. “Why should I?”_

_“Because Mr Stark wanted to see me today to see if I was adjusting well.”_

_“I can tell him that myself.”_

_Okay. Zayden was originally going to brush off Harley’s attitude but this was taking it a step too far._

_“He wanted to see me, so can I please-“_

_The door clicked open to reveal Tony Stark who stared at the two teenagers in front of him._

_“What is going on here?” He asked, noticing the tension between them._

_Zayden hissed slightly. “Harley is being unreasonable.”_

_Tony looked at Harley with a raised eyebrow. “Harley? I wanted to see Peter because I wanted to make sure he would fit in well with the other interns.”_

_“He never said that.” Harley shrugged._

_Zayden turned at stare at Harley in shock. He had literally just said that to him not a few seconds before Tony had opened the door._

_“But-But I just did!” Zayden spluttered._

_“No, you didn’t. I would’ve remembered that if that were the case.”_

_Tony sighed and spoke. “Harley, why don’t you head off. I want to talk with Peter.”_

_“Fine.” Harley shot Zayden an annoyed look and Zayden stiffened and glared back at him. He walked off, brushing past Zayden who thankfully kept himself from stumbling._

_Tony’s expression turned soft and worried, even if it was hardly noticeable. “Is everything alright, Mr Parker?”_

_“Yeah, the other interns are alright.” Zayden said. “It’s your precious child that is the main issue.”_

_“I wanted to ask you about something involving Harley, actually.”_

_Zayden looked at Tony with a curious expression._

_“He is moving to your High School next week so I wanted to ask you if you could help him around the school.” Tony stated._

_Zayden pursed his lips and shrugged. “I will try, but if he doesn’t want my help then I’m not giving him any.”_

_Tony wanted to say something but Zayden snapped without realising it or meaning to._

_“After all, he is acting all high and mighty around me just because I’m similar in age to him. You should probably talk to him about that.”_

_He walked down the hall without giving a look behind him. It was harsher than he wanted but Zayden was still ticked off by the fact that Harley was plainly being rude every single time they had spoken._

__  
~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden leaned back against his locker, eyes closed as he remembered the first time he had met Harley.

That was not something he wanted to remember but Harley’s attitude had rubbed off on him the wrong way. He wasn’t even surprised when Harley had become close with Flash within the first day of being at the school.

His lips curled back slightly and fluttered his eyes open to stare at the bright lights on the ceiling.

Footsteps.

Zayden grumbled.

Of course, he had no time to himself at this school. Being surrounded by other students constantly was draining on him most of the time.

Let alone the constant lights and noise that he only manages to block out.

“Oi, Parker!”

Zayden turned his head to see Flash approaching him with an unreadable expression.

Great. What does he want now?

“Hello, Thompson.” Zayden greeted.

“Harley had some interesting information for me yesterday.” Flash jumped straight to the point which made Zayden mentally groan to himself. Couldn’t Harley keep his mouth shut for one second?

“I’m guessing you think it was interesting considering you want to talk about it.”

“No, it was just intriguing, ‘tis all.”

Zayden made a low humming noise. It didn’t matter what he said or did, Flash would just continue talking as though Zayden _wanted_ to hear it.

“Harley told me that Spider Man helped with the bomb in the building and even had an AI robot.”

That made Zayden pause.

He had no idea that Harley even saw Karen. Usually she was so good at keeping out of sight even in the large eagle form like she was that night.

“Flash, I am not interested.”

“Well, Harley and I are curious as to how Spider Man has an Ai – which I might add, Harley has also seen you with a robot AI.” Flash leaned towards Zayden with a critical expression.

“If you are trying to suggest something, I would advise having some stronger evidence to back up your claims.” Zayden snapped, eyes narrowing at Flash.

“What, worried that Harley has made a perfect observation?”

Zayden merely raised an eyebrow. “Not at all. Considering that I don’t know Spiderman nor why you are interrogating me about this. Why don’t you ask Harley to do your dirty work for you, or are you already doing so?”

Flash grabbed Zayden’s shoulder and slammed him into the locker.

Thankfully, Zayden had learned to act fazed by those actions. He could make it believable even to those who knew him well.

Zayden shook his head and curled his lips back at him. “Fuck off, Thompson.”

“Listen here, Parker. I do not want you to make this difficult.” Flash sneered.

Zayden didn’t even bother resisting even though he could easily shake him off. “I am not making anything difficult, Flash.” He met Flash’s gaze evenly. “This entire thing is not my fault, and you know that.”

Flash’s grip tightened slightly but they both heard a loud yell from down the corridor.

“Parker! Thompson!”

Michelle stormed down towards them, fury bubbling off of her form. Looking even more intimidating, Zayden could feel himself shrinking away and could visibly see Flash also coil into himself.

“Michelle…” Flash squeaked.

“Get off of his back, Thompson.” Michelle barked and watched as Flash shifted slightly before slinking down the corridor and away from them.

Zayden shook his head and smiled weakly at Michelle. “Thanks, MJ.”

Michelle snorted and shot him an annoyed look. “You can watch your own back, Parker. Plus, there is no meeting today so I won’t be barking insults at you today.”

Zayden gasped, clutching at his chest. “What am I going to do now? How will I live?”

“I’m sure you’ll survive.”

Even though she sneered it, Zayden could tells he was struggling not to smile or laugh at Zayden’s dramatics.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Zayden said as he walked towards the entrance of school. Slightly relieved as it meant he could catch up on sleep and sleep earlier that night.

He rummaged through his bag and noticed his phone lit up with a new text message.

 **Unknown:** Hey Peter

 **Unknown:** It’s Shuri btw

Zayden raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t aware Shuri had his number at all.

 **Spidey:** Heyo Purrincess  >:3

**Princess:way too eager to hear what Harley had to say.**

**“I’m not sure just yet.” Harley sounded disappointed but Zayden could hear an uncertainty lacing his tone. “One hand I can’t wait for Tony and Pepper to reveal me as their heir.”**

**“Why would you even consider anything else?” Flash sounded as though it was an easy decision to make.**

**Zayden could understand that it wasn’t.**

****Princess:** Spidey…Hello…Princess to Spidey**

****Spidey:** Soz just hearing smth**

****Princess:** AH**

**“Do you not want to be heir? Which is a foolish choice.”**

**“I do!”**

**Zayden scowled at his phone, turning it off and stuffing it into his pocket.**

**He’ll message Shuri later. Maybe, if he remembers to do so that is.**

**Why was he even angry?**

**He knew why.**

**That didn’t matter though. Tony and Pepper didn’t know so who was Zayden to ruin this for them?**

**No, he just had to get used to it. He would get over it.**

****Princess:** u alrite?**

****Spidey:** yh just distracted by life**

**That was a lie and he knew it.**

**He could at least attempt to be over it.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is done a day early because I'm out tomorrow, but maybe I'll get another chapter done tomorrow as well

Zayden flicked through the pages of his book as he struggled to make sense of the words. Damn, why did he still have to write essays on books that none of them wanted to read in the first place?

“You look like you hate life.” Tina plopped down beside him on the couch but earned no real response from Zayden.

“What tipped you off?” Zayden asked, not sparring her a glance since he knew full well that it wouldn’t matter either way.

Tina hummed and looked pensive as if contemplating her words carefully. “Just your aura, your entire being is off from normal.”

Zayden turned his head to stare at Tina with a look of complete disbelief. “That never really answered my question ya know.”

“What do you mean it didn’t answer your question?”

Tina looked scandalised, clutching her chest as though Zayden had just done the worst possible crime.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting that comment.”

“Ah, there is the thing. The things you don’t expect is what you need the most.” Tina pointed out and jumped up from the couch and grabbed his arms, yanking him into a standing position. “Come on.”

“Where are you taking me?” Zayden asked as Tina began to drag him down one of the corridors on the tower. “You’re not gonna kill me, are you?”

“Nah, that would be a total waste.” Tina rolled her eyes. “What would I get from killing you?”

“A sense of pleasure?”

“I’m not a sadist, man.”

They found themselves in a room in which Zayden had no idea it even existed.

“What?” He looked around the bland room as though he would find something to indicate what it is used for or what is _used_ to be used for.

“This room is a unique one.” Tina nodded as she stepped around the room, arms making a sweeping movement around her body.

Zayden placed his hand on the wall and furrowed his brows. “And?”

“No-one really knows about this room. It’s my own here.”

“You let me in?”

“You are trustworthy, and I doubt you’d reveal this to anyone.” Tina’s eyes sparkling. “Like you’d be able to re-find this place after all.”

Zayden snorted. “I’ll just ask Friday-“

“Good luck with that.”

Zayden paused and turned to face Tina who leaned against the wall with a smug expression.

“What do you mean by that?”

Tina looked up at the ceiling. “I can bypass laws of reality, you should know that by now.”

Zayden sat on top of the table on the other side of the room, keeping his eyes on Tina. Her expression was blank and unfazed as though she wasn’t currently bending his mind. Making him rethink everything in his life.

“Well, I know you know more than anyone else but I didn’t know about this kind of thing.”

Tina chuckled. “Well, let’s just say that I have help from Infinity.”

That didn’t surprise Zayden as much as he thought it should’ve.

“I am not surprised that you know Infinity.”

Tina’s grin spread across her face. “Well, you can only enter this room if I am already in here. So, I don’t need to worry about people coming in here at will.”

Zayden rested his head against the wall and raised his eye brows at her.

However, before he could continue to ask, they heard chatter from the floor above. Chatter that they could both hear loud and clear.

They shared a look between each other and turned their heads back up to the ceiling.

“We should decide something.” Pepper spoke to someone that Zayden didn’t know who it was.

“I know, Peps.” Tony said with a heavy sigh. “It’s strange to make this decision over all.”

 _What decision?_ Zayden wondered and glanced at Tina who looked conflicted and shifted her gaze to the floor.

“Tina?”

“This room breaks laws of reality.” Tina muttered. “They are floors above us but the room makes it sound as though they are just next to us in the room.”

Zayden opened his mouth to ask how it was even possible when Pepper spoke again.

“We have to figure something out quickly, or it will be too late.”

“I know.”

Pepper sounded with a soft huff. “Harley needs someone now.”

That caught Zayden’s attention.

What had happened to Harley?

“After all, his mother had thrown him out.”

That…

Zayden reeled back and frowned, brows furrowing. What?

Tina sighed. “Not surprised.”

Zayden snapped his head towards her, looking angered as his temper began to flare up inside him. “Did you know this was going to happen?”

“Yes…”

“And you brought me here even though you knew-“

Tina snarled at him. “I didn’t know that it’ll happen today! Let alone whether or not you would’ve heard it.”

“But, Tones, Pepper.” Rhodey’s voice caused both of them to pause and quieten their own voices to hear what was to be said. “What about…We don’t know what happened with Zayden…”

“Rhodey, we know but it’s been years.”

“What if you find him again?” Rhodey pressed, sounding desperate.

“If we do? I dunno.”

“Rhodey,” Pepper’s voice was even, “we don’t even know if he is still alive and Harley needs someone.”

“I’m not saying that Harley couldn’t possibly need you, I’m just trying to ask about what you two will do if we ever find Zayden again.”

“Zayden…Is our son…” Tony murmured. “But…would he even remember us? Let alone know we are his parents?”

Zayden glared down at the ground.

“So…You’re giving up on finding him?”

There was no response.

“You still need to find some closure for yourselves!” Rhodey spluttered.

Tina blinked in shock, not expecting that implication. “Zayden…”

She spun around to see Zayden leaving the room and slamming the door shut behind him. The sound echoing around her and she shook her head before rushing after him.

“Peter!” Zayden heard Tina’s yell from behind him. “Wait!”

He growled. “What do you want?”

“I’m sorry.” Tina said, looking and sounding guilty. “I really had no idea of what was going to happen or what was going to be said.”

Zayden stiffened his shoulders, eyes narrowing again. “How could you possible not know that?!”

“I don’t know everything that is going to happen!” Tina yelled, getting close to Zayden to make her point clearer. “My knowledge is limited. I didn’t want you to know everything like that even if I did know what was going to be said.”

Zayden wasn’t sure if he believed her but he knew that she was telling the truth. Tina rarely lied and jumped straight to the point. She wouldn’t lie about this.

He bit his lip and sighed, before turning around to walk off.

“Peter?” Her voice was hesitant and worried.

“I’m not angry at you.” Zayden muttered. “I know you wouldn’t lie about this, Tina.”

Tina smiled weakly when he looked over his shoulder at her. “Thank you for understanding, Peter.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“Watch it!”

Loki yelled as he jumped out of the way of a fire ball, curtesy of Zayden.

The God narrowed his eyes at Zayden who looked and seemed off ever since he entered the building. Stress radiated off of him, which is why Loki even wanted them to do some magic fighting practise.

He figured it would allow Zayden to blow off some steam without worrying about him accidentally lashing out at a random passer-by on his way back home.

That would not be good for anyone.

Yet, Loki was regretting his choice since Zayden was acting more violent with his magic than normal.

He raised his hands in an attempt to calm Zayden down. “Hey, kid, what’s up?”

Zayden frowned. “What do you mean?”

Loki huffed, and folded his arms. “You are literally acting strange and out of it. I just want to know what’s wrong. Or is it a crime to be worried about someone?”

Hey, Loki was trying to be caring and considerate towards Zayden.

The kid deserves someone to be there for him, especially since Loki did not think that his aunt was the right adult for him to talk to.

Zayden rolled his eyes and looked away. “I don’t know why you are worried in the first place.”

“Well, you almost burnt my entire body with the fire ball. I don’t do well with heat, and I quite like living.”

Loki stood straight up as he noticed Zayden doing the same thing. He looked conflicted but ultimately kept his mouth firmly shut.

Great. Looks like Zayden wasn’t cooperating with anyone today.

“Can you please tell me what is going on?”

Zayden narrowed his eyes. “It’s…Nothing.”

“It’s not nothing if it is distracting you.” Loki pointed out, remembering his mother’s words to him during some of their first training sessions.

“It’s just that…” Zayden struggled to speak before shutting his mouth again.

Loki made a noise to indicate that Zayden should continue talking.

“They’ve given up on finding me.”

Loki did not need to press to know what Zayden meant.

Though it shocked him.

Why would Stark give up on looking for his son?

“Is there a reason why?”

Zayden shrugged.

There was a reason but Loki knew better than to force it out of a teenager. They can be very uncooperative if they feel threatened and are masters of curling in on themselves. Loki knows this extremely well.

“Okay, you don’t need to tell me then.”

Zayden looked at Loki with a curious and perplexed expression but stretched.

“I’m going home.”

“Good idea.” Loki agreed. Maybe it’ll calm Zayden down for the next time they meet and practise.

Loki watched as Zayden left the building, leaning on the stair rails as the door shut behind the teenager. He hummed to himself.

A part of him doubted Zayden’s words but another part of him had a feeling that they hadn’t given up, more like they weren’t actively pressing it because of another important issue that had occurred in their lives.

Well, regardless, Loki wasn’t going to intervene unless of course it actively distracted Zayden for more than a week.

He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t worried, however.


	19. Chapter 19

The sand blew across the beach, the wind was faint and gave very little respite to Zayden who kicked at the ground out of irritation.

“I hate it so much!”

Zayden glared at the sky, noting the twilight appearance, the stars were faint because of the light pollution around him.

Karen skidded to a halt behind him, her head tilted to the side, tail flicking from side to side. If she could express concern and worry then her eyes would be filled with those two emotions. However, her eyes did dull a little bit in a way to symbolise it.

“I thought I’d be okay with it…” Zayden muttered quietly to himself without looking back at his AI.

“Boss…” Karen murmured, ears laying back as she took a tentative step towards him.

Zayden looked back at her. “Why am I not okay with it?”

“I can give some reason but we both know you know the real reason.”

Her boss laughed, the sound was not what you’d associate with a laugh. It sounded broken and almost made Karen flinch at how grating it also sounded.

“Of course, I know. How could I be so stupid?”

Karen didn’t know how to answer that question so she remained silent.

“Of course, they’d give up looking for me. They should’ve given up years ago. Then this wouldn’t be so painful to deal with.” Zayden growled.

His fingers dug into his palm as his teeth gritted against each other.

Karen stepped closer to Zayden. “Boss…”

“Why didn’t they give up years ago?”

“Because you are their son.” Karen said simply, her voice so quiet that if Zayden didn’t have enhanced hearing, he wouldn’t have been able to hear her words. “Deep down they won’t give up on finding you.”

Zayden huffed and continued down the beach.

The light wind did not match the sombre feeling that surrounded Zayden, kicking the sand and watching the wind catch it and carry it a few feet before dropping it once more. His shoes sunk into the sand, making it difficult for Zayden to continue walking.

Yet, he still did even though he knew that he should probably be heading home to prepare for his next patrol.

It could wait.

Karen shook her head. “Boss come on. We should go home.”

“I’m good.”

“No, you’re not!” Karen cried out desperately.

“Karen, I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Knowing you, if we don’t talk about it now, we will _never_ talk about it.”

“We will discuss this on a later date.”

“I don’t believe you.”

Zayden stopped and looked over his shoulder at Karen who looked as annoyed as she could get. Ears and tail twitching ever so slightly but her eyes remained on him to see what he was going to do.

It could be anything, knowing Zayden.

He looked out across the water as it darkened along with the sky. His hair fluttered in the wind and he sucked in a deep breath, noting the sharp salt scent in the air.

His body shook minutely as he struggled to keep his emotions in check.

It was only a matter of time before they bubbled up and over.

Zayden let out a yell before his legs gave out beneath him, making him collapse into the sand. His mind was so out of it that he could barely catch himself in time.

His thoughts whirled around rapidly, making him unable to focus properly on anything around him.

“Boss!”

The teenager was briefly aware of Karen. The robot brushed against his shoulder and arm, her way of showing her great concern and distress for his current situation.

“Boss, can you sit up?” Karen asked, her voice sounding distant.

Zayden groaned as he struggled to do just that, but eventually was able to sit down. His fingers clutching his jeans, tugging on his shirt ever so slightly as his vision swam with unshed tears.

“Boss?” Karen rested her paw on Zayden’s knee.

However, she jerked back when Zayden yanked his knees to his chest and buried his face into his knees. Arms wrapped around his legs, keeping them close in an attempt to comfort himself and give himself some warmth.

A sob wracked through Zayden and his entire body began to shake.

Karen looked around. She was an AI – emotions were not really her forte.

Suddenly, something rumbled in the air, catching Karen’s attention and Zayden stiffened. Quietening himself in an attempt to not bring attention to himself.

However, since they were the only things on the beach, it was pretty difficult to miss them.

Karen stiffened and growled out a warning noise.

Whoever this was could fuck off for all she cared.

He was her boss.

She was going to protect him with her life – well as much of a life as an AI has.

Something glinted in the sky, illuminated by the lights from the park and the light from the suit.

Suit?

The War Machine Armor lowered to the ground, the sound quietening. Karen stilled raised her hackles in a warning to Rhodey that she wasn’t going to back down easily and he’d have to get through her to get to her boss.

Rhodey removed the helmet and stared at Zayden, not giving Karen a second glance.

Why didn’t he care about her?

She was intimidating for crying out loud.

“Zayden?” Rhodey asked, eyes growing soft with concern and Karen wanted to launch herself at him.

Didn’t he know he was making it worse for Zayden? Was he even slightly considerate? Why did he come out here? Her boss hadn’t even confirmed it to him, though made it pretty clear about the entire thing regardless.

“Zayden.”

“Don’t.” Karen growled which finally caught Rhodey’s attention.

Rhodey looked at her with a surprised expression. Karen wished she could express her emotions more readily, since it would be beneficial in properly scaring Rhodey.

“You are going to make things worse.”

“Karen…” They snapped their heads to Zayden who raised his head, revealing the tear stains down his face and red eyes.

“But, boss…”

“Don’t. Leave it.”

Karen wanted to put up an argument but when Zayden looked to the side to avoid their gazes, she knew it was pointless.

He must know what he is doing, if he is asking her to back off out of these situations.

Rhodey shifted. “Can I come closer?”

Zayden shrugged to himself but Karen merely hissed at him. “Don’t overstep your boundaries.”

Rhodey watched as Karen bounded down the beach. The AI looked at him over her shoulder, looking startling annoyed but Rhodey figured she was more worried and hesitant about leaving Zayden alone.

“Don’t mind her.” Zayden whispered, catching the adult’s attention. “She is protective of me.”

“I can tell that.” Rhodey made his way towards the teenager and sat down beside him.

“You…Are you alright?”

Zayden curled his lips back. “What do you think?”

Rhodey looked at him with a worried expression, eyebrows furrowed as he struggled to figure out what he should say to try and ease the tension around them.

“You must’ve heard about Harley.” Rhodey said simply.

“I feel bad for Harley’s position. I’d hate to be kicked out of my home by someone who is there to care for you.” Zayden admitted. “May is my aunt for all extent and purposes.”

Rhodey nodded. “I can understand that.”

“I dunno…I am just annoyed that they have given up on looking for me.”

“They haven’t though…”

“Pfft. Tony is meant to be one of the smartest people in the world and he didn’t know his own son is right under his nose?” Zayden scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Rhodey stiffened at those words.

“HYDRA destroyed everything about May and Richard, including you.” Rhodey whispered.

“But I would be on record!” Zayden complained.

“Yes, you are but Mary and Richard were clever and hid you better than anyone else could’ve.” Rhodey’s voice sounded distant and wistful. “There is a reason they were two of the top SHIELD agents. Fury never questioned them because they never lied to him on serious matters.”

Zayden never questioned Mary and Richard’s skills as SHIELD agents. He had heard their stories as he grew up and adored hearing what they got up to with their work. Such as, where they visited and the languages they knew.

“Did they look for me?”

“They still do.” Rhodey admitted.

Zayden looked at Rhodey with a look of pure confusion. He got that judging by what Rhodey said but it being said out loud to him was a different story.

“They looked for you for years. Regardless of what was said to them about you they never lost faith that you were out there alive.”

Zayden looked at his feet. “Would they even accept me?”

“A part of them hopes that you are their son.” Rhodey said. “It’s the main reason Tony never went delving into your details – you are a minor, yes, but a part of him doesn’t want to find out if you are or not. He isn’t sure if you will know or you won’t, and either option can cause you to flee.”

“He is right about that.” Zayden murmured. “I’d feel hurt and betrayed that he went delving into my life without my consent.”

“So, why aren’t you telling them who you are?”

“What? And ruin their relationship with Harley?” Zayden asked. “Even though we aren’t friends, and I find him slightly irritating, I’m not a fucking asshole.” Rhodey almost snapped at him for his language but didn’t. Zayden was glad for that really.

“They love Harley, enough to step in and fill the roles of parental figures that he needs in his life and why should I rain on his parade. He deserves it more than me, after all.”

It felt like poison coming from Zayden’s mouth but it was true.

Rhodey’s expression could only be described as pity. However, he could see that Zayden was the perfect blend of both his parents – even if he himself couldn’t. Their personalities were perfectly combined in their son.

“I am here whenever you need to talk, Zayden.”

~~~~~~~~~~

It was not every day Tina wanted to force two people to talk to each other so their problems could at least get easier.

Then again, if people spoke to one another their would be no drama and no stories.

Did not mean that this was something Tina _liked_.

Accepting it means nothing in her eyes.

Couldn’t Shuri and Zayden just talk with each other about their fucking obvious crushes on each other. Dear god, Zayden even admitted that he was Spiderman to Shuri and she is freaking out?

She had been for a while and it was driving Tina insane by this point.

She was just glad that Shuri had to go home because, yeah – it was pointless.

Just make out and say you are dating. Easy, over and done with. No pain for anyone else who has to witness their ridiculous attempts of trying to start something but shying away before something can actually occur.

Zayden is just worried about not being good enough for Shuri and Shuri is worried that Zayden will give up and go after someone who is more like him.

Tina _really_ wanted to lock them in a room together so they can sort out everything. And make out – obviously.

“Hey, Tina.” She looked up to see Harley, shifting from foot to foot. “Do you know where Peter is?”

“No…Why?” Tina lied easily, she knew where he is and just hoped that Rhodey could talk some sense into him.

Harley looked around the room. “Tony wanted to ask him about something but he couldn’t find him.”

Tina was not surprised about this. Tony couldn’t deny his care for Zayden even if he tried.

Before she could say anything, the elevator doors opened to reveal Zayden who bounded into the room. Tina could tell he had been crying for a while but had rushed to try and correct his appearance.

“Peter?” Harley and Tina both asked at the same time.

Zayden’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m fine.”

Tina doubted it but said nothing as Zayden quickly rushed past them to enter another room to most likely distract himself.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have you ever wanted to do a different reveal so you plan your entire rewrite around this one change XD

The air crackled loudly but suddenly a sharp snap ripped through the stillness of the room.

Loki looked confused. “You could do it before.”

Zayden grumbled. “Yeah, but that was _before_ when I was in a different mindset.”

Honestly, at this point. Portals should be easy for Zayden to open now. He had spent quite a while training and creating portals. He hated his mind going haywire and not settling down.

His lips twitched upwards to try and ease the unease that was filling the room. “Using portals in fights can be called ‘Portal Combat’.”

Loki raised an eyebrow. “A joke? Really?”

“What were you expecting?”

“Something serious.”

“Like my relationship with the desire of death?” Zayden couldn’t even stop the words spilling from his mouth.

Loki’s expression morphed into a mix of confusion and concern for Zayden’s sanity.

Zayden had given up on worrying about his sanity. It got to the point that whatever happened, happened at this point.

The talk with Rhodey had relaxed Zayden and he didn’t feel as much annoyance and disdain for everyone around him. Everyone who seemed to have a good life and no issues at all.

Okay, that was harsh.

Everyone has issues of their life, it’s just that they never show anyone this because they want to allude that they have a great life going for them.

“Should I be concerned?” Loki asked as Zayden turned back to trying to create a portal.

Zayden shrugged. “If you want to.” He looked at the God but didn’t really seem to care what Loki wanted to do.

He took a deep breath and stretched his hands out in front of him. Orange sparks flickered in front of his fingers, stretching out themselves and revealing a different location on Earth.

Which location it was exactly was something that Zayden didn’t actually know.

“Hey, Karen!” Zayden called to his AI that was seated on the nearby table. Distracted by something – most likely talking with Friday who was probably complaining about the people who she was watching. Who knows with AIs now?

She hummed as she looked at him with a curious expression.

“Do you know where this is exactly?” He waved towards the portal which was showing signs of closing. He hoped it wouldn’t close soon, this was the most progress he had made with portals all morning. Give him some credit, man.

Karen perking up. “Yeah, that is the Himalayas.”

The Himalayas?

That made no sense to Zayden.

Why did the portal open to the Himalayas?

Before he could ponder that question any longer, the portal crackled before closing with a high pitch whine. It sent a shiver down Zayden’s spine who winced at the noise.

Zayden shook his head and Loki hummed.

“At least you opened a portal, finally, today.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Zayden grumbled. Wishing that it had remained opened for a longer period of time. It would make it look like his hard work was actually for something instead of nothing like it usually was.

“Your portals are like parents, sometimes there but never around when you need them.” Loki muttered without thinking – most likely remembering Odin’s own parenting tactics.

However, it touched a sore point for Zayden as well.

Zayden made a face and growled. “At least you had your parents.”

Loki spun around to look at him. “I had no idea I was adopted!”

Zayden raised an eyebrow and grumbled. “And?”

Loki stepped towards Zayden and growled lowly. “You’re life hasn’t been the worst, you know.”

“I never said that.”

Their eyes met, a silent challenge in the air. Karen stood up from where she sat and let out her own growl at Loki. Getting on the defensive just in case the worst happened.

Loki was a frost giant, and spiders don’t fair well in the cold.

Loki also knew this.

Zayden muttered. “You never knew you were different to your family like I did. I grew up knowing that my parents had no idea who I was but I’m not saying that my life is terrible.”

No response from the stone-face god of mischief.

“In fact my life was quite great, but you don’t have to say anything about parents now being around when you need them the most.”

Loki sighed. “I…”

Zayden raised an eyebrow. Now, it was a waiting game to see if Loki would apologise. He did tend to run his mouth without thinking.

Karen looked at her boss but Zayden pointedly ignored her. He wasn’t going to apologise first, not when it was Loki who started it.

“I’m sorry.” Loki said quietly, and Zayden was half-tempted to torment Loki by claiming that he hadn’t heard Loki’s words even though he very clearly had.

Zayden sighed. “I’m sorry too, I should watch my attitude sometimes.”

Karen hummed as she settled back down – content that Loki and Zayden weren’t going to try and rip each other’s throats out.

It was a more likely occurrence than the pair let on, considering how similar they were. Then again, Karen was also surprised that Zayden hadn’t snapped and seriously hurt anyone yet anyway. He dealt with a lot of shit at school with Flash – so it was a wonder that Zayden was still so calm.

She had to admire his resolve to not harm anyone if he could help it. Only harming those who really deserved to get their ass kicked by someone they underestimated. Which was honestly, more of a common occurrence than anything else.

The door opened to reveal Stephen walking in and looking between Loki and Zayden.

“Are the two of you in the process of killing each other?” Stephen was quite bland and blasé about the entire situation that he just missed. “Or should I come back in a couple of hours to see who stands as the victor.”

“No, we aren’t.” Zayden gritted out as he turned to walk to the other side of the room, clearly not wanting to talk to either of them.

Loki, on the other hand, had a different approach. “You just missed it. We came to a tie and agreed we’d do it all again on a later day.”

Zayden snorted as Stephen just looked unimpressed at Loki’s statement.

“For someone who claims how powerful you are, you are really just dramatic aren’t you?”

“You have just realised?” Zayden asked, looking over his shoulder as he let Karen climb onto his arm and shoulder. “I noticed that in one of the first conversations I had with him.”

Stephen rolled his eyes as Loki let out a loud whine about how inconsiderate Zayden was being, even though she should have already realised that. They had known each other for at least two months by now after all.

“Anyway,” Stephen fully turned to Zayden and waited for him to face him as well, “how are your portals coming along?”

Zayden shrugged.

“So and so. I can open them but they don’t last long.”

“It is progress.” Stephen agreed.

Zayden shrugged once more, causing Karen to grip tightly onto his shoulders as to not get dislodged from them.

Stephen’s expression was still bland and unimpressed, clearly tuning out Loki’s continuous whines from being ignored. “I would suggest focusing on a location that you know well to probably open a portal to.”

“Like?”

“A location that means a lot to you. It differs to everyone but can help with figuring out how to keep the portals open.”

“So it can be anywhere?” Zayden asked, a bunch of locations ran through his mind.

“Yep.”

Zayden hummed as he folded his arms. An eyebrow raised and a smirk slowly spread across his face.

Karen grumbled. “What are you planning, boss?”

“Nothing too bad.” Zayden trilled but his expression gave away his plans. “Well, I’m gonna have to explain it all but hopefully nothing too bad happens.”

“What do you mean?”

They all turned to see Thor, Bruce and Wong enter the room. All of them were looking between them and that was when Zayden realised that Loki had stopped his complaints, but instead was just standing in the corner, sulking as though he wasn’t over a thousand years old.

“You’ll see~”

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony rubbed his temples as he leaned back in his chair, wondering as to when he could relax and not have to worry about the government on his case – even though he made it clear he has no idea where the rogues are.

He and Rogers left on a bad note, after all.

“Boss. Are you alright?”

“Just stressed. I’ll be alright, girl.”

Tony sighed and looked at the ceiling.

What has his life come to?

“Boss. I’m picking up some unknown waves of space-time.” Friday spoke up making Tony sit up straighter.

“What?”

He couldn’t have heard that correctly.

Was the Space Stone being used? How did it even get back to Earth? Was Thor back? If so, why did he decide to bring the Space Stone back here?

However, before he could ask anything else, he heard a sharp sound behind him.

“Mr Stark!”

Tony almost screeched when he spun around to see Peter leap out of – was that a portal?

He clutched his chest and gaped at Peter as though he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Honestly, he really couldn’t. Portals? That seemed like something Tony wouldn’t have minded going his entire life without knowing about.

He could do without the heart attack as well, thank you very much.

“What…Mr Parker.” Tony gasped. “What?”

Thankfully, Peter looked regretful and that was when Tony noticed the robot perched on his shoulder. Said robot looked much too amused for an AI.

“I…Sorry.” Peter sounded sad and almost shrunk in on himself.

“No, no.” Tony waved him off and stood up and properly viewed the portal behind Peter. “It was unexpected.” Might as well come clean to the teenager.

The cat blinked – was it a blink? – and spoke up. “Well done, boss. You’ve gone to a perfectly good adult and given him a heart attack. Look, he has anxiety now.”

“He’s fine, Karen.” Peter spoke to her but Karen merely scoffed.

Tony’s gaze landed on someone behind Peter who was currently arguing with his AI about heart attacks and how to identify it without believing it was something less life-threatening.

“It’s only easy for you, boss.”

“You are an AI, certainly it would be easy for you to identify it.”

Peter and Karen paused as they turned their attention to Tony, obviously catching onto his shock and silence which they had been filling. Peter looked concerned before glancing over his shoulder and letting out a squeak of his own.

Yeah.

Tony was not seeing things.

That was definitely Thor, Loki and Bruce.

“What is going on?”

The three of them looked at each other and Peter shifted from foot to foot. “We can explain?”

“Please do.” Tony managed to find his voice to say it – instead of making it come out harsher and more serious than he wanted. Peter looked terrified, and it sent a pang through Tony’s heart.

Someone poked their head into view. “Can we come through?”

Tony nodded, and motioned for them to come through. It was going to be the weirdest thing he saw today – even though Karen was up there as well.

Four figures stepped through, there was soft chatter from the other side of the portal. Discussing something that Tony didn’t want to pay attention to as his mind was going haywire.

He really needed to work things out in his mind before he started this conversation.

It couldn’t be that bad, could it?

“Tony Stark.” The unknown figure nodded. “We haven’t met before.”

“Clearly.” Tony said, raising an eyebrow at him.

“I’m Stephen Strange.”

“Pleasure.”

Tony’s gaze landed on Bruce who stepped forward with an uneasy smile – obviously concerned and worried about how Tony would react. Typically, Tony would brush it aside but he’s missed his friend deeply, and stepped forward to draw Bruce into a hug, noting how Bruce clung a little tighter to him.

“Bruce…Where have you been?” Tony asked.

“Uh…Outer space on a planet covered in trash?” Bruce spoke, sounding as though he wasn’t sure but still fully certain.

“It is called Sakaar.” Loki said pointedly.

Stephen looked between them all and his gaze landed on Peter. Tony noticed the mixed expression on Peter and suddenly was even more confused than he was previously.

“Mr. Parker.” Peter almost flinched as he stepped back, looking around and noticed that the portal had shut. When did that happen? “How do you know them?”

Peter shifted and tugged on his shirt, looking much smaller and younger than he was. Tony felt a little bad for intimidating the kid, but he wanted answers and wanted it from Peter.

“Umm…” Peter seemed to be struggling to find the words that he needed to properly explain what the actual hell was going on.

“Tones!”

Rhodey and Pepper came into the room, probably have being altered by Friday. They came to a stop and stared at everyone who was in the room.

Silence surrounded everyone.

Stephen hummed. “Perhaps we can discuss this over tea?”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden kicked his legs out under the table as he stared at the hot chocolate in his hands. He didn’t really want any but Pepper offered to make him some hot chocolate and he couldn’t turn down the offer.

Karen sat on his lap, hissing. “Stop it. I’m trying to rest.”

“You’re an AI. You don’t need to rest.”

“I definitely do, having to deal with you on a daily basis.”

Tony blinked. “Your AI is definitely…Interesting.”

“She’s a nuisance.” Zayden muttered, relaxing his body which Karen thanked him for as she settled back down. “Don’t know I keep her around.”

Loki shrugged. “You get used to Karen.”

“I would hope so.” Rhodey stated simply as he finished his drink.

Tony furrowed his brows. “You didn’t answer my previous question.”

Zayden snapped his head up, body slightly stiffening. “I…It’s a long story, I guess.”

“We have time.”

Zayden hummed as he tried to think back to the first time he met them.

“You know after the week us interns stayed at the tower?” Tony nodded. “Well, I stumbled upon the New York Sanctum which Dr Strange watches over and resides in, and Thor, Loki and Dr Banner were there.”

“That was a good month ago at least.” Rhodey said, turning to Bruce. “How long have you been back for?”

“Just over a month.” Bruce said, licking his lips as he continued to drink. “We…were worried about bringing attention to ourselves and Stephen offered us protection.”

Tony opened his mouth but closed it and looked at Zayden, clearly knowing that something wasn’t been said.

“I’ve passed the New York Sanctum plenty of times and never felt the need to enter it, so what gives?”

“The Infinity Stones.” Zayden said, deciding that he might as well come clean. “I could feel the energy from the Space and Time Stones and it just drew me towards the Sanctum.”

Pepper, Rhodey and Tony all shared a look with the same obvious question.

How could someone just ‘sense’ the Infinity Stones?

“You better explain.” Thor said, glancing at Zayden who looked back at the table.

“I can feel the Infinity Stones more so than others because…” Zayden bit his lip. “My senses alerted me of something strange and not dangerous but it wanted clarification on what it was.”

“Your senses…”

Loki was obviously irritated about Zayden beating around the bush because he spoke up.

“Our friend, Heimdall, is known for being able to view everything in the Nine Realms, which Thor now rules over. He knew that Peter Parker here has enhanced senses and figured that perhaps he would sense the stones and we decided to test it. Parker was not impressed that we just called him Spider Man without any actual clarification.”

Zayden yelped and looked at Loki, feeling betrayed even though it was pointless.

It was going to be revealed sooner or later.

Tony, Pepper and Rhodey all screeched. “You are what?!”

“He’s Spider Man.” Karen sniffed, raising her head and then leaped onto the table. “You clearly heard that.”

“We did, but…” Tony was slightly shaking, horrified that the teenager in front of him was Spider Man who he worked alongside. “How?”

“Got bitten by a radioactive spider.” Zayden shrugged. “Long story.”

Rhodey met Zayden’s gaze. “You didn’t want to tell us.”

“I don’t want people to know, there is a difference.” Zayden muttered.

Zayden could see Tony and Pepper watch him with a worried expression but turned his gaze away.

He does not need to clarify his reasoning.

They aren’t his parents, not really. He just needed to accept it.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was like my favourite chapter to write????
> 
> Mwahahahaha

Today was meant to be a normal day.

Well, as normal as a day for Tony Stark could go.

Tony had to admit his life got turned upside down two days prior. With the realisation that Spider Man is Peter Parker, his intern, Tony had spent a lot of time focusing on him.

He didn’t even realise how many times he had walked away from a fight more injured than he let on.

It lead to an interesting conversation between the two of them after lunch.

~~~~~~~~~~

__

_“Can we talk, Mr Parker?” Peter looked back at Tony with wide eyes and he coughed, biting his lip before nodding slowly. Allowing Tony to walk down a hallway and following after him._

_“Mr. Stark?” Peter asked._

_Tony paused and looked back at him, noticing the worried and slightly panicked look on his face._

_He saw Karen sitting int the doorway, watching him and he slowly felt as though she was judging him. He thought he only had to worry about Friday judging his choices._

_“I…Never thought a kid would be Spider Man.” Tony admitted._

_“Not a kid.” Peter muttered under his breath._

_He looked over his shoulder and Karen perked up ever so slightly._

_“I’ll be fine, girl.”_

_Karen grumbled. “I hope so.”_

_Peter didn’t look at her as he turned around and trotted back out, the door closing behind her._

_“A normal teenager would flaunt it.” Tony said. “Yet, you keep it a secret.”_

_Peter shrugged. “No one would believe me. I could say that I am and they would think I was asking for attention.”_

_That Tony could see happening. Peter didn’t scream ‘vigilante’ material after all. Yet, the sole fact he didn’t want to flaunt it and instead focused on the importance of something like protecting people._

_“Adults trust me. Whenever I need to get out I just throw on the suit and overlook parks and watch children. It allows their parents to relax.” Peter admitted, his voice dipping._

_Tony raised his eyebrows. He had seen that on the very rare times he’s passed a park and seen Spider Man perched on a light post. The kids loved him and often asked to be carried by him._

_Peter rarely did so unless their parents gave him explicit permission as long as he was careful._

_“I don’t doubt that.” Tony said. “I am just surprised.”_

_Peter looked up at him briefly before scuffing the ground. “Are you going to tell me to stop doing my vigilante stuff?”_

_“No.”_

_Peter snapped his head up. “What?”_

_Tony just raised his eyebrows. “I won’t stop you from being Spider Man, but…That suit has things to be desired.”_

_“It works just fine.” Peter muttered._

_“I never said it didn’t.”_

_“And?” Peter seemed to fail to get Tony’s point._

_Tony wondered how a kid so brilliant could be so slow uptake._

_“I could help you with upgrading the suit.” Tony felt as though he should offer some support to keeping him even more protected. “Not changing it but making it more durable.”_

_Peter seemed to think that Tony was saying that for an ulterior motive. It wasn’t._

_He had seen Spider Man take some damage and the suit get destroyed, the least he can do is offer some was of keeping him more protected. Even though his heart was screaming at him to make him a new suit, he knew that wouldn’t blow over so well._

_Peter as both a civilian and Spider Man hated having help and refused to seek any if he felt like he could deal with it himself._

_“I have some materials that you can check out to see what suits for vigilante activities best.” Tony clarified._

_The teenager looked at him with a torn expression. “I…”_

_“Look, I think it would be best for everyone involved if you weren’t so vulnerable to getting hurt during fights.”_

_“I…I guess…” Peter shifted and rubbed his arms._

__

~~~~~~~~~~

It wasn’t an exact response but it was better than nothing.

Peter would accept some help as long as it was entirely his decision on the material and what upgrades would be implemented.

Hey, Tony could easily give Karen some more access to the suit and give Peter pointers on what to do. If it didn’t conflict with Peter’s own quick thinking and ability to adjust to a fight.

It wasn’t like Tony felt a surge of protectiveness over him that didn’t stem from him wanting to keep Spider Man safe.

Peter would firmly argue that he can take care of himself.

Tony knew several occasion where that was not the case but decided not to argue with it. Judging by Karen who told him to try and convince Peter that some of those upgrades would be beneficial.

It had only to deal with the fact Spider Man is a teenager and needs all the protection he can get.

Nothing else.

Absolutely, nothing else.

Tony paused as he caught the sound of quiet murmuring nearby. Something inside Tony told him to listen and pay attention otherwise he will regret it.

Now, Tony regretted many decisions he has made so getting the feeling that he should overhear this conversation makes perfect sense. His instinct was finally catching up to him.

“Are you positive?”

“The boss is never wrong.”

“I’m just saying. If he was as powerful as he claims then he would’ve dealt with the brat already.”

“Shut up! You don’t want him to overhear do you?”

“I am not scared of him.”

“You should be. He is more powerful than you think.”

Tony paused and furrowed his brows as he tried to figure out who on earth they were talking about. The brat and the all-powerful boss they are mentioning.

“Why does he want Spider Man so much?”

_Wait. What?_

“Dunno. Claims he has some leverage over Tony Stark with the brat.”

“I don’t buy it.”

“Well, anyway. The brat is around here somewhere. We just need to locate him.”

Tony couldn’t listen anymore.

He pushed himself away. He had heard enough.

Tony didn’t want to care about who was after Peter. He just knew he had to attempt to protect him. They knew who Spider Man was, and supposedly their boss did as well if judging by their words.

His eyes narrowed.

No harm would come to Peter.

Not if he could do anything about it.

Tony looked up at the apartment building and sighed heavily. He just hoped he hadn’t been followed on the way here. That would ruin everything and throw his world upside down.

He did need to protect Peter somehow.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Waiting for the door to open to reveal May Parker was excruciating. His mind went haywire. What if they had already gotten a hold of Peter? What if they had targeted May? Perhaps they were misleading him and he was worrying about nothing.

Yet. May did open the door. Surprised, but let him in when he asked.

“Stark, I’m surprised to see you.” May said simply as she lead him into the kitchen which caught Karen’s attention. The Ai was perched on the bench, gaze more alive than Tony last remembered.

Briefly, he also remembered how Peter explained that every so often he adjusts her code slightly in case he noticed her playing up. To which she argued that she never played up which lead to a long discussion on what they both consider ‘playing up’.

Tony stated as long as she wasn’t like Ultron she wasn’t playing up.

Karen tilted her head. “Iron.”

He also learned that Karen had a habit of giving people nicknames. The type of nickname shows how much Peter liked somebody.

“Karen.” Tony raised an eyebrow. “Not surprised to see you here.”

“Of course.” Karen almost hissed but looked at May. “Since you are so intelligent after all”

Okay…Tony didn’t mind snark but seriously? He wasn’t going to argue. Karen was stubborn and it took a lot to convince her not to be rude to people. Peter admitted he had given up on that aspect of her code. It was too much of a hassle to change now.

“You must know Karen’s importance then.” May said, taking a sip from her tea. “Tea?”

Tony shook his head. “No thanks. Yeah…Spider Man. You know then?”

“Of course I do. Peter is a terrible liar. He has gotten better through the years though.”

Tony did believe that. Keeping a vigilante secret would force anyone to learn how to lie.

He didn’t know what to say to May’s comment though.

“But you aren’t here to discuss Karen and Spider Man.” May raised an eyebrow. “So? What is it that you want?”

“I wanted to ask Peter of something.” Tony hummed as he watched Karen walk across the bench. “I want to test his hoverboard in a safe environment, and I figured that it would be good to see what material can be used for a newer version of his suit.”

May looked surprised by that. “Only that?”

Tony looked at her, knowing why she was distrustful of him. He didn’t have the bets reputation.

He was working on it.

“That is all. It was what I promised Peter and I try to stick to my promises.”

The last thing he wanted was to force someone to do something they didn’t want to. He had bad memories of his own, let alone others having flashbacks to certain moments as well.

Tony would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t want to test Spider Man’s abilities but because he hadn’t previously discussed it, it was not something he mentioned.

He would probably bring it up in a later conversation – once he got Peter to let them take care of any post battle wounds.

“Karen. Go and fetch Peter.” May said.

Karen huffed and trotted towards the room, and Tony realised how quiet her footsteps were.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Boss.”

Zayden snapped his head up and glanced to the side to see Karen enter his room.

“Tony Stark is here. I know. I overheard everything.” Zayden muttered as he turned back to his hoverboard.

Karen sniffed and sat down. “So?”

“So what?”

“What do you say?” Karen pressed.

Zayden paused and looked at the ceiling. “You already know my answer.”

“Stark deserves to know it himself.”

Zayden nodded. “I know.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony and May looked up when Peter walked out of his room.

Tony wondered how much sleep Peter had received recently. Considering his eyebags were more evident than normal and his clothes seemed to hang off of his lithe frame.

That made him wonder if it was just from not eating or because his metabolism was just too fast and burnt through everything but muscle rapidly.

“Peter.” Tony greeted.

“Mr Stark.”

“Do you have an answer for me?”

Peter nodded. “Yeah…I mean…It can’t be bad, right?”

“It will be a weekend at the Avengers Compound. It is a safe environment.”

“Sounds fine.”

Tony was surprised at how easily Peter agreed to come along. He was expecting more convincing on his part and more stubbornness from Peter.

So, it was a bit of a left turn.

Karen spoke up, mentioning something Tony dreaded to hear. “What about your patrols?”

Peter’s face paled and looked uneasy. “Oh…yeah.”

Tony hummed and broke in before Peter could back out. There was no way that he was letting Peter go on any more patrols without a proper and ample suit. “I’m sure New York will be fine without it’s protector for two or three days. It’s been through worse and has come out fine.”

He slightly noticed May’s expression shift to one of annoyance that Tony was making a sound point. It was only for a few days but he couldn’t understand why.

It would get Peter out of the city for a while and hopefully those who were looking for him would realise that that peter wasn’t around. Maybe even assume they were in the wrong part of the city. Except, May’s expression returned to her normal smile and kind eyes but something inside Tony didn’t settle right.

“I guess.” Peter seemed to ponder it for a little while. “I can be packed by tomorrow.”

“Perfect.” Tony nodded, relieved that he wouldn’t need to say anything more. Somehow he figured that mentioning that he was being hunted down would not bode well for Peter _or_ May. “I will send Happy to pick you up tomorrow.”

“What time?” Peter asked, probably now realising he has only a few hours to pack.

“Nine. It takes a while to get to the compound, especially in this traffic.”

“Okay.” Peter nodded.

May clapped her hands. “Well, is that all, Mr Stark?”

Tony nodded and stood from the table and made his way to the front door, May trailing after him like a proper host. “I will see you tomorrow, Mr Parker.”

Peter waved. “See you, Mr Stark.” He promptly turned around and re-entered his room.

Karen seemed slightly amused before following him, claws lightly scraping against the floor.

 _Hmm_ , Tony thought to himself. _That is probably why she is so silent. With Peter’s enhanced hearing, loud clicking like that would probably give him a headache._

That was something he needed to keep in mind then.

No loud noises or bright lights while Peter was visiting. He didn’t want Peter to feel overwhelmed and that was the first step to ensuring he felt comfortable.

“Thank you for visiting, Mr Stark.” May smiled. “Will you be brining Peter back?”

“Perhaps. We will see when the time comes.” Tony replied and waved at her as he made his way down the hallway.

He needed to get out of there.

May…There was something off about her. Normally he’d flirt with people (male or female he didn’t really care. Flattery may not get him everywhere but he could at least try) but he decided not to then.

First things first.

He needed to ensure Peter would be fine.

~~~~~~~~~~

May leaned against the front door and stared at Zayden’s room.

A slow smile spread across her face.


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ten more chapters to go!!
> 
> You know what happens next ;D

Zayden dropped his bag onto the bed that he would be using during his stay.

The room at the compound was, in a short description, huge.

Granted, it wasn’t overly large. Yet, still huge because Zayden was not use to such a sizeable room. His bedroom could fit twice into this bedroom and there will still be some extra room.

Then again, Harley had informed him that the major bedrooms were even larger.

Not that he would ever admit to anyone that he actually wanted to see those rooms.

He stretched and walked towards the window and pulled the curtains back to take a look out into the yard. Wait, was it a yard? It was like a training course, but there were plants that created some stunning imagery.

Somehow that seemed like Pepper’s doing. Wanting a dash of colour amongst the bland greenery.

He heard the faint flutter of wings and smiled to himself.

Looks like Karen was enjoying herself with the extra freedom and not have to worry about people getting irritated and assuming she is a drone.

She had been almost shot down a couple of times.

Zayden looked up and noticed the flicker of light across her metal body. He flicked the window open, pushing it all the way to alter Karen of where he was staying.

“Karen!”

His AI turned around to look at him before swooping down to meet him on the window sill. He jerked back to avoid the flutter of her wings and she landed upon the window sill. She looked up at him, her eyes blinking at him (well her eyes flickered between on and off).

“I like the compound, boss. I could get used to a place like this.”

Zayden frowned at her and rolled his eyes. “Of course you do.”

“What, are you complaining?” Karen teased, wings stretching as she seemed to shake off the dust that wasn’t there. “That isn’t like you.”

“I don’t want to complain, but the room is huge.” He muttered, gaze moving around the room as he properly studied it.

The walls were decked in plain colours, the wardrobe was vacant of any clothes considering that he wasn’t planning on putting any of his clothes here. Even though a part of him really wanted to do so.

It would mean that this would be his room whenever he stayed there.

Yet, he had a feeling that they would move him into a bigger room if he decided to have a proper room here.

“I’m just saying. I wouldn’t mind living here.” Karen said as she flew onto the bed. “Seriously, have you checked out the grounds yet?”

“No.”

“You should.”

Zayden rolled his eyes and turned away from his AI. He loved Karen but sometimes she was just unbelievable.

He couldn’t expect to be here anyway.

This wasn’t his home.

“I’m going to walk around, maybe sit on the roof or something.”

“Of course you’d choose the roof of all places.”

“It’s easy for me to get to.”

“It’s inconvenient.”

“For everyone else, Karen. Not me.”

Karen seemed to send him a judgemental look before stalking off, shifting into the cat that was seated on the desk. He wondered why she even bothered. Certainly being a bird would be more appropriate for a place like this.

Zayden moved to the door and quickly made his way out. “Stay here.”

“Fine.” She sounded huffy but he really didn’t want her to bowl him over as she tended to do whenever they were in a new place.

He looked around, the hallways looked bland but with the pictures and windows it gave it some type of life. Zayden wondered why there were no decorations around, then he remembered that the Malibu house got destroyed. Probably didn’t want to run the risk of that happening again.

Zayden paused when he noticed a peculiar photo on the wall. It wasn’t easily noticed from any position but he did see it – of course.

It was a photo of the original Avengers.

Must’ve been taken shortly after they moved into the tower.

They were all dressed up in their suits (except Bruce) and were smiling at the camera. It must’ve been taken by Pepper or Rhodey.

He almost reached out to it but decided against it.

He didn’t know what Friday would do if he did.

Yet, that wasn’t what he heard.

Three pairs of footsteps.

Zayden snapped his head around and saw three shadows turn the corner to reveal the people they belonged to. Scott Lang, Hope van Dyne and Bucky Barnes.

“Umm…”

They all looked at each other, wondering what they were doing there. Zayden could figure out that they were there for an important business but why he was there is pretty much lost on anyone but him.

“Hi?” He squeaked, voice cracking slightly – much to his chagrin.

“Hello, kid.” Scott said breaking out his surprise to smile at him warmly. “Don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”

That made Zayden snap out of his thoughts. “I am Peter Parker, one of the interns at Stark Industries.”

“Parker?” Bucky’s voice was so quiet.

“Yeah, it’s my last name.” Zayden stated simply.

However, Hope had another question. “No offence, but what are you doing here? Tony doesn’t often allow people to come into the compound just because.”

Zayden shifted, not really sure how he should explain to them about why he was there. “Uh…Testing something out in a controlled environment.” Not the full truth but still truthful.

“That doesn’t seem like the full story.” Hope stated, raising an eyebrow – easily seeing through his lie.

He bit the inside of his cheek and looked at the ground. “I…Don’t know how to explain it properly.”

“Well the best way to explain is to just talk.” Scott grinned.

Zayden suddenly broke in. “I thought you were under house arrest.”

Scott paled. “I am, it’s just…I was able to get out of it for a day because of Tony Stark. I owe him. I enjoy making my house enjoyable but it can get boring.”

“You are better at cooking.” Hope pointed out.

“Cause it is the only thing I can actively do.”

“It’s edible at least.”

“It’s called _flair_ Hope.”

“Dying from food poising isn’t _flair_.”

“Parker…That last name.” Bucky looked as though he was trying to figure out where he had heard that name before. “I know that last name.” There is the confirmation.

“Uh…My parents were SHIELD agents.” Zayden explained as he looked around to try and figure out a way to leave. “You probably heard it from there, even if you weren’t part of SHIELD.”

“SHIELD. Parker.” Bucky muttered. “Mary and Richard?”

“Yeah.” Zayden was surprised. He wasn’t expecting Bucky to actually even know their names. What was the point of that?

Bucky’s gaze softened and his turned his head away, catching Hope and Scott’s attention. Breaking off their conversation of what classifies as a proper meal.

“I thought their son had died with them in the plane crash…” Bucky sounded confused as he looked back at Zayden. “You…Don’t even look like them.”

“WAIT!” Zayden cut in. “How do you know them?!”

He sounded more pissed off then he was expecting, but considering they were his acting parents – could you really blame him?

“They…They acted as HYDRA agents. I worked alongside them, if my memory hasn’t failed me in that regard.” Bucky explained. “I…They were revealed to not be actual HYDRA and actually SHIELD.”

Scott and Hope shared a look but seemed to look ready to act if they needed to.

“The overseer…demanded their deaths. I…The plane they were on crashed with tampering.”

Zayden’s voice was quiet. “You destroyed it…”

Bucky said nothing. That was the only confirmation that was needed.

Scott hissed. “But, you just said that their son had died in the plane crash.”

Bucky met Zayden’s gaze.

“You aren’t their son, are you?”

Zayden was silent.

“How?”

“Their son had died in childbirth.” Zayden murmured. “No-one knew and I was…”

“Taken in by them to keep up the illusion that you are their kid.” Hope said, quickly realising what had happened.

Zayden nodded and looked around, even though he could hear that no-one was coming. He was just paranoid. That he was very well aware of.

“Pretty much.”

“Then…Who are your actual parents?” Scott asked as he stepped towards Zayden, looking worried and concerned for him.

Zayden rubbed his arms. “They don’t know that I am…I don’t expect them to anyway. I’ve learned to keep my mouth shut and lie about it.”

“Tony and Pepper.” Hope said. “Are they-“

Zayden hissed and jerked away from the adults before stalking down the hallway. “They don’t know. They know one secret but this one is one that I won’t ever tell willingly. Not when I could ruin what they’ve done so far.”

“A bit of an exaggeration.” Scott argued as he followed after the teenager. “Certainly they must love you. A parents never forgets their child and will always love them if the bond is there.”

Bucky and Hope were a bit slower to catch up but they did, walking just a few feet behind Scott and Zayden.

“However. One secret? Which one is that?” Scott continued, bringing Zayden a sense of comfort and relief that Scott was making an attempt to be nice.

Bucky muttered. “I don’t like keeping secrets from Tony Stark, considering that he is offering to help me.”

Zayden sighed. “Sorry.”

“Spill it, kid.” Scott said simply, drawing Zayden back to what his previous had been.

“Oh! It’s…I’m Spider Man.” Zayden made it sound all very anti-climatic since it was stated so very simply.

“What?” They all looked at him with wide eyes and Zayden shrugged.

“Yeah. I am.”

“I was expecting something more amazing.” Scott admitted.

Hope hissed. “Scott.”

“I don’t know what more you want me to say. There is nothing else to say really.” Zayden said. “Sorry to ruin your hype.”

“I’m not saying that meeting another bug isn’t amazing.” Scott almost squealed.

“I’m an arachnid not a bug.”

“So?”

“What is going on here?”

They all turned to see Tony approaching them, a curious expression in his eyes. Zayden had the bright idea to look away and avoid his gaze. In all honesty, he probably shouldn’t have.

“What are you telling them, Peter?” Tony asked.

“Just that Ms Potts is more interesting than you.” Zayden responded quickly without really thinking about it.

Tony stiffened, eyes widening at the quip. Hope had a blank expression upon her face and Bucky tried stifling the laugh that almost slipped out. Scott, however, couldn’t be bothered to try and cover his own laugh.

“Well, Pepper is amazing. I’ll give you that.” He sounded wistful, much like he always does when talking about her.

Scott nudged Zayden and grinned. “But, I’m your favourite of all time right?”

Zayden grumbled. “You swatted me out of the sky.”

“I apologise for that incident.”

Tony seemed surprised. “You told them?”

Zayden nodded. “Was I not meant to?”

“It’s not that, I’m just surprised you did. Considering you have known me for so long yet I was only made aware less than a week ago.” Tony explained and raised an eyebrow at them. “Anyway…You aren’t going to do anything to him, are you?”

“Nope.” Scott said and seemed to study Tony more closely. “We were escorting Peter around. He doesn’t know his way around after all.”

Zayden spoke up. “I promised I’ll talk with Harley.”

“Friday could’ve told you.”

“I know.”

Hope waved her hand. “Don’t worry. We can take him to Harley, if that is alright with you.”

“I don’t need three adults showing me around. I’m competent enough.” Zayden hissed, embarrassed and looking at the ground, feeling his cheeks heat up.

“Then I will.” Scott grabbed Zayden’s arm and tugged him after him. “Harley is in one of the labs right?”

“Yes.” Tony was bewildered by Scott’s determination to drag Zayden behind him.

“Then, I’ll take him down there and Friday can point him towards the right lab. It’s all good.” Scott didn’t even bother hanging around before they made their way down a different corridor.

“Scott?” Zayden asked, stupefied.

“I am a father myself.” Scott said simply. “I know the expression parents have when talking to or about their child that they love and care for.” He looked at Zayden in the corner of his eye. “That was the very expression I saw on Tony’s face. That, I am not exaggerating.”

Zayden looked down and scuffed the ground. He really didn’t know what to say to that.

“Peter,” Zayden met Scott’s gaze. “What is your real name?”

“Zayden. Zayden James Stark.” Zayden whispered, having lost the ability to speak any louder.

Scott didn’t know how to respond to that but stated something else.

“You have my word. I won’t tell anyone.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden drummed his fingers along the lab counter as he rubbed his temples trying to figure out what was written in front of him.

Harley groaned and slammed his head onto the counter, making Zayden jump and jerk back in shock. His gaze landed on him, who was groaning loudly despite it being slightly muffled by the counter.

“What’s wrong?” Zayden asked, strangely concerned for him.

“My life.” Harley responded without skipping a beat.

Zayden hummed and took a sip from the water bottle. “Well, I thought I’d get a different response from that obvious one.”

Harley hissed and pushed himself up. “Seriously?”

Zayden looked up at Harley and frowned. His brows furrowed out of confusion. What had he done to piss Harley off? They had only spent an hour together and he’d already done something bad? That was a new record but not what he was focused on.

“What?”

“Do you hate me?’ Harley asked, fingers gripping the desk. “I know…I know you know that I used to like you but…Do you have to hate me?”

“I…I don’t hate you.” Zayden muttered. “Wait…” He paused. “Used to?”

Harley’s voice dropped. “You like Shuri so I gave up…”

Zayden felt a bit better about that. So, he wasn’t tormenting Harley as much anymore with his not so subtle crush on Shuri. Perhaps he still does…

Zayden decided to not focus on that prospect.

“Well, I don’t hate you at all.” Zayden said, louder and more serious.

Harley looked away when Zayden glanced at him to figure out what was going through his mind.

The door opened to reveal Tony Stark standing in the doorway.

“Thanks for the help, Peter.” Harley said as he made his way out of the room. “We’ll try it out tomorrow.”

Tony and Zayden just watched as Harley left the room. The door closing behind him to have tension and awkwardness settle within the room as neither knew what to say in that situation.

“I was going to ask how everything was going.” Tony said, breaking the silence.

Zayden sighed. “Lack of communication. The general reason for relationships to not work out.”

“So, I guess you aren’t going to want to discuss your suit and potential upgrades?” Tony asked.

“Not really.”

“Are you going to be alright, Peter?” Tony asked as Zayden began to walk towards the door.

“Just going to the roof. I’ll be fine.” Zayden responded and saw Tony try to reach out but catch himself before his hand to rest on Zayden’s shoulder.

~~~~~~~~~~

 **Spidey:** Hey

 **Purrincess:** What’s up?

 **Spidey:** Nothing

 **Spidey:** Almost had a fight with Harley

 **Purrincess:** How come?

 **Spidey:** He used to like me and…well he thinks I hate him because of it

 **Purrincess:** Do you?

Zayden had to pause at that.

 **Spidey:** No. Not for that…It’s complicated

 **Purrincess:** Okay…Well I’m here if you want to talk ya know

 **Spidey:** I know

 **Spidey:** It goes both ways, remember

 **Purrincess:** I remember

Zayden sighed and looked across the compound’s grounds.

He was certain he only had issues with Harley because it seemed like Pepper and Tony had given up on trying to find him.

Right?

He hoped that was truly the case.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter did not want to be written

Zayden felt a hand land on his shoulder and roughly shake it from side to side. Keeping quiet, Zayden tried to figure out who was waking him up so rudely.

“Peter.”

What?

Harley?

Zayden blinked his eyes but buried his head into the pillow so Harley didn’t realise that he was actually awake. He was confused as to why Harley was waking him up since their conversation yesterday turned sour.

He never thought that Harley wouldn’t be one to hold a grudge against anyone.

“Peter. Wake up. I know you are awake.” Harley sounded as though he was huffing at Zayden’s actions of trying to ignore him.

“What is the time?” Zayden’s voice was muffled.

“About six.”

Zayden lifted his head and narrowed his eyes at him. “Seriously?”

“I was excited to test out the hoverboard.” Harley admitted somewhat nervously, obviously mistaking Zayden’s irritation and annoyance.

Oh.

The test of the hoverboard.

Zayden forgot about that.

“Yeah. Yeah.” Zayden groaned. “Let me get up and we need to have breakfast first, too.” Yeah, food sounded like the best option right now. He didn’t even realise how hungry he was.

“Well, breakfast is currently being made.” Harley said.

“And?” Zayden failed to get Harley’s point.

“I said I’d wake you up.”

Zayden pushed himself out of the bed, despite how comfy it was and how likely it was for him to fall back to sleep. “Okay, okay. By the way, I’m sorry about yesterday.”

“No.” Harley cut him off. “I should apologise. I should know better than to believe you’d do something like that.”

Zayden didn’t know how to respond to that and waved his hand. “Okay, can I get changed?”

“Oh, sorry.” Harley excused himself out of the room.

Zayden shook his head and turned to change into a pair of clothes that would be comfortable. Such as tracksuit pants and a slightly too large shirt.

“Boss?” Karen asked as she fully sat up on the desk, tail swishing from side to side.

“It’s alright, girl.” Zayden stopped by the door and looked at her. “You coming?”

“Can I?” She already leaped off the desk to join him. “Anyway, it’s a stupid question as you already know the answer.”

“That I do.”

Zayden opened the door to reveal Harley leaning against the wall as he stared at his phone. Zayden cleared his throat to get his attention and he yelped almost dropping his phone. He saw Harley’s father’s contact on his phone and obviously seemed to be hesitating whether or not he should call him.

He had been there and knew that feeling well.

Except his father doesn’t know that he is his son.

Slight difference.

“Going to call someone?” Zayden motioned to the phone.

“Yeah…” Harley nodded and put his phone away. “My father…”

Zayden raised an eyebrow. “Strained relationship?”

“Don’t know him.” Harley responded as he made his way down the hallway. “Come on.”

“Touchy subject?”

Harley did not respond so Zayden figured that the conversation was over. For now at least.

The door opened in front of the two of them which revealed the kitchen and dining room. Harley continued to say nothing as he sat down at the table. Zayden didn’t know where to sit but noticed Bucky sitting by himself at one end of the table.

“Morning.” Bucky mumbled as he finished off his glass of water.

“Morning.” Zayden poured himself a glad of juice – barely concerned about what flavour it was.

Taking a sip he recoiled back and hissed loudly at the sensation of the juice.

“Peter?” Harley and Bucky both snapped their heads towards him.

Zayden sniffed and grumbled. _Fucking spider instincts of not liking Citrus._

“I’m fine, just…Didn’t realise how strong the scent was.” Zayden lied through his teeth as he continued to drink from the glass.

Hey, he had already poured the drink so he might as well finish it. It wasn’t like it wasn’t going to kill him like peppermint and garlic. Citrus was fine in minimal quantities.

“Do you know like orange juice?” Bucky asked.

“No. Like I said. It’s just the strong scent of it all.”

Harley looked at him as though he didn’t believe his words but had no evidence that Zayden was lying.

“Morning.” Pepper said, voice lilting as she came into the dining hall.

Zayden looked over at her. “Ms Potts, are there any more dishes that need to be brought out?”

“Yes there is.” Pepper stood up and looked at him. “Do you want to help?”

Zayden was already making his way to the kitchen at her previous confirmation. “Well, yeah. I feel bad.”

“You’re a guest.” Pepper tried to argue but honestly, Zayden had already made his mind up.

He ducked his head. “I know but I still feel bad.”

Pepper’s expression grew soft at his words.

After setting all the food out on the table, everyone delved into the food. Zayden felt his mouth water as he piled food onto his plate. Minding the fact he couldn’t pile that much food on the fact that Harley has no idea that he is Spider Man.

Bucky nudged Zayden. “Aren’t you going to eat more?”

He shook his head and spoke quietly to him. “No. Harley doesn’t know I’m Spider Man so I have to restrict the amount of food I eat.”

Bucky looked as though he really doubted Zayden’s words but said nothing to try and convince him otherwise.

“Hey, Peter.” Zayden looked up to see Harley finishing off his pancakes. “Can we test the hoverboard?”

Zayden hummed as he slowly the food he was currently eating. “Yeah, but I need to double check everything first.”

“That’s fine. I can wait.”

“Really?” Zayden raised an eyebrow in response.

Harley just huffed and rolled his eyes. Pepper, Tony, Rhodey, Bucky, Happy, Scott and Hope just looked between the two of them with ranging expressions of amusement.

~~~~~~~~~~

Zayden and Harley both looked at the hoverboard.

Harley leaned towards it and ran his fingers along the top of it. “Well…It looks like it is in a good state to test it in.”

“Maybe but it still seems too risky to test it for now.” Zayden groaned feeling uneasy about the testing of said hoverboard.

“So?” Harley didn’t seem to catch onto Zayden’s uneasiness.

“I don’t want it to go wrong, and I can see that happening if we test it now.”

“Well, we won’t know what is wrong with it with we don’t test it.” Harley argued.

“If something happens to you I am going to be the one who is to blame.” Zayden looked at him and noticed Harley’s conflicting look in his eyes.

Harley turned back to the hoverboard and frowning. “We should still test it out.”

“No.”

Zayden really didn’t want to have this conversation, especially when he realised that Harley was set in testing it out. The hoverboard wasn’t finished or completed. Testing it out now was dangerous.

He saw Harley snap his head to face him. “If we test it out then we know what needs to be fixed.”

“I said no!” Zayden snapped, anger suddenly flaring up within him. He had to squash it so he didn’t act to rashly. “I don’t know what you think we’ll get from it but it’s still too risky.”

Harley shrugged. “So?”

Zayden frowned and Harley reached for the hoverboard to check over it. He had to keep his mouth firmly shut. Harley was just wanting to test it out though and he couldn’t blame him.

He would want to test the hoverboard out as well but he knew the risks.

“Why don’t you want to test it out?” Harley asked.

Zayden grumbled. “I told you. It is risky.”

“How is it risky? We’ll be testing it in a safe environment.” Harley pointed out, looking over his shoulder to stare at him.

“If any wires aren’t properly set then if it is used it could cause it to go up in flames.” Zayden said, rubbing his face.

“Well, let me look it over and you will realise that you are overreacting over it all.” Harley scoffed.

Zayden wanted to argue but leaned back to watch Harley go over everything. Sure, he was certain that it was fine but could you blame him? He had bad memories of things going up in flames.

Which had nothing to do with his own abilities with fire.

Twenty minutes later.

“Well, I went over it.” Harley stretched his arms over his head.

“What did you find?”

“That you were overreacting.”

Zayden raised an eyebrow in response, prompting Harley to continue talking.

“Everything is fine and ready to be tested.” Harley jumped up and grabbed the hoverboard and grunted under the weight of it.

Zayden sighed. “I thought I said ‘no’ to testing it.”

“Yeah, but don’t you want to find out if it works properly now?” Harley asked, drawing out Zayden’s natural curiosity on the prospect of creating an actual working hoverboard.

“Fine.” Zayden stood up to follow him. “But the second something goes wrong we are stopping the test immediately.”

Harley let out a loud ‘whoop’ and Zayden grabbed the hoverboard off of him, noticing that he was struggling to carry it. It was heavy. Thankfully, Zayden was relieved that his enhanced strength ensured he could hold the hoverboard without issue.

They made their way through the building as Harley racked off plenty of locations where they could test it out. Especially if they didn’t want anyone accidentally getting hurt.

It was more likely than you thought.

“Kids.” Zayden and Harley both heard Tony’s voice and looked at him as he looked between them with a curious expression. “What are you two doing?”

“Testing out the hoverboard.” Harley sounded proud and smug that made Zayden want to drop the hoverboard onto the ground and walk off.

“Is that so?”

“Yep.”

Tony looked at Zayden and then turned back to Harley. “Well, stay close to the building. Lunch is going to be ready in about three hours so make sure you two are there for that.”

“We will, don’t worry.”

Zayden could tell that Harley wasn’t serious about it but said nothing. He’d keep Harley close to the building anyway, regardless of whether or not he actually appreciated it.

~~~~~~~~~~

“How about here?” Harley asked as they looked at the clearing around them.

“But, it’s quite a distance from the building, exactly opposite to what Mr Stark said.” Zayden argued, about to turn around to head back.

“Who cares?” Harley placed his hands on his hips. “There is plenty of space here without worry of it causing any damage.”

“There is open space near the compound.”

Harley smirked at him and Zayden dreaded what Harley was going to say. “Are you scared?”

“No.” Zayden hissed.

“Then why are you so worried? We’ll be back before Tony realises we didn’t listen to his words.”

Harley sounded so set on his decision and it made Zayden wonder how Harley even got through his life. Since he was so eager to jump head first into potentially risky situations.

Okay. So did he, but Zayden had the excuse that he had the ability to get out of those situations without a threat to his life.

“Fine.”

Why did he cave? Why did he agree to Harley’s _stupid_ plan?

Harley switched on one of the switches of the hoverboard and grinned when it purred to life. Looks like the source of power was working exceptionally well. Zayden had to give Harley props for that idea.

Not for his most recent one though.

Harley climbed on top of the hoverboard and almost yelped when it shifted slightly before lifting off the ground. Zayden kept his gaze firmly on them. If Harley fell he could hurt himself.

“It’s working!” Harley sounded so ecstatic at that news.

“I can see that.”

Zayden couldn’t help but feel iffy about the entire thing.

As Harley gushed about how they could make the hoverboard conserve more power, Zayden felt something run down his spine. His senses kicking into over time as he tried to focus on their surroundings.

They weren’t near the edge of the property but that meant nothing.

They weren’t alone and Zayden could not figure out where these people were hiding.

All around them? Possibly. Though it seemed unlikely for that to be the case.

“Harley.” Zayden called out to him. “We should probably go closer to the compound.”

“Why?” He looked like he was enjoying it but could he seriously not feel the danger they were in?

He had to act quick. “Well, I’m sure Mr Stark wants to see how it is coming along as well.”

_Please buy it. Please buy it._

Harley seemed to ponder his words before shaking his head. “Nah. He’ll stop us from testing it out properly.”

_Fuck._

“But shouldn’t we tell him about the progress anyway?”

“Nah.”

With that, Harley turned back to the hoverboard and wanted to see if it could go higher. Zayden had to keep himself from dragging him down to the ground. He’d probably get an elbow to the face.

Though that was beginning to look really encouraging since Harley was now actively ignoring him.

“Come on, what if something happens?”

No response. Of course.

“Harley.”

Nothing.

“Harley, let’s go!”

His voice was harsher and more annoyed than previously.

Except, Zayden wished he had acted faster.

A yelp ripped from Harley caused Zayden to jump. Harley clutched his neck as he looked around, blood slightly running down his skin.

He couldn’t see where he was stepping and Zayden leaped forward just as Harley’s foot slipped from the edge. Sending him to the ground, but Zayden managed to keep him from hitting the ground.

Zayden glanced at his neck to notice something lodged into it.

A dart.

Zayden pulled it from his neck and placed his hand against the wound. Therefore trying to keep the blood from continuing the spill out. It had just missed a critical artery.

That was a good thing.

Right?

Zayden hissed quietly. “Don’t fall asleep on me, Keener.”

He heard the hoverboard clatter to the ground and it made him snap his head up to stare at a figure who was standing on the other side of the clearing.

“Who are you?” Zayden called out noticing that Harley had fallen into a deep sleep.

“Don’t recognise me, Stark?” The figure asked.

Zayden frowned but before he could do anything, something struck his neck.

He gritted his teeth and yanked out the dart that struck him. Feeling the blood run down his neck as he tried to stop it and close the wound. He felt his vision going hazy and blurry.

Shit. What was in that dart?

Whatever it was, it was powerful. Able to pass his own healing ability.

Before he actually passed out he saw the figure approach him and his eyes widened at the realisation of who it was.

Red Skull.

He fell to the ground, his head slamming into the ground and it instantly set his body off and his mind went blank. His vision going black to the sound of laughter.

~~~~~~~~~~

Red Skull stood above the two teenager and smirked to himself.

He raised his wrist and spoke into something, his voice rumbling.

“Yes. I have both of them.”


	24. Chapter 24

Karen looked out across the yard from her perch on the roof, wondering where Zayden and Harley were.

She hadn’t seen either of them in about two hours and lunch was being made right now. Her wings stretched as she considered the possibilities of where they were.

Perhaps they had snuck back into the house.

Or only Zayden had considering the fact he did tend to get irritated with Harley.

However, the chance of Harley dragging him into a ludicrous plan was also high up there.

Her boss was capable but he did have a habit of being dragged into the plans his friends make. Always saying that they shouldn’t do the thing and then they ended up doing the thing.

Karen shot up into the air with a strong flap of her wings. However, she could ask Friday if they had returned from taking out the hoverboard for a test.

“Karen!”

Karen turned to see Pepper Potts leaning on the window sill and looking at her with an expression that Karen identified as intrigued.

The AI decided that she might as well go down and spend some time with Pepper, considering that she was her boss’ mum. Even if she had no idea about it.

“Hello, Ms Potts.” Karen chirped once she landed on the window sill. She looked up and realised they were pretty much the same height as her now.

“Hello, Karen.” Pepper stepped away from the window to let Karen hop inside. “What are you doing?”

“Looking for Boss and Harley.” Karen said, looking around the room. “You don’t know where they are, do you?”

“I thought Tony said that they were going to test out the hoverboard but near the building.” Pepper said, sounding slightly unsure.

Karen looked up at her. “What? Strange, I couldn’t see them nearby.”

“Maybe they returned to the building?”

Friday spoke up just then. “I am afraid to say that they haven’t returned since leaving.”

Karen and Pepper shared a look and Karen hoped that she got across her worry.

“Friday…Inform Tony of this fact.”

“Right away, Ms Potts.”

Pepper frowned. “Nothing could’ve happened to them. The land is well protected.”

“Everything?” Karen asked.

“Yeah.”

Karen frowned and fluttered her wings as she considered the complications of that statement. Somehow she wasn’t sure. Zayden was known for getting into dangerous situations without caring for his own safety.

“Pepper?” Tony asked as he entered the room. “Friday just told me that Harley and Peter hadn’t returned.”

“Yeah, weren’t they meant to return by now?” Pepper turned to him.

“Not really. I just told them to stay near the compound so they knew when lunch was ready.”

“I haven’t seen them.” Karen said.

Tony paused and let out a low groan as he tilted his head back. “It must mean that they ventured further from the building than I told them to.”

Karen hummed. “Should I go and find them then?”

“If you want.”

Karen jumped back onto window sill and looked over her shoulder at the two adults.

“Don’t worry. I’ll find them and bring them back.” Karen trilled.

She took off into the sky and kept just above the tree line. There was a clearing in that direction so Karen decided she should check it out first. It was about a twenty-minute walk from the building so it was in the right location for Zayden and Harley to go to.

Especially since they were going against Tony’s words.

Sometimes Karen really wished Zayden would stand stronger against these plans. It is the reason why she often reminded him of his morals. Zayden was stubborn though and only went along to watch his friends fail. Like the best friend that he is.

But, something caught her attention.

Her gaze landed within the clearing to reveal only the hoverboard.

Where were the boys?

She adjusted her vision to look for any heat signatures, yet nothing came up on her radars. Nothing human like anyway. Plenty of birds, reptiles and insects.

Her wings caught the wind as she landed on the grass beside the hoverboard. It was slightly cracked and broken, revealing the wires. It made her flinch back at the sight. Her robot forms had never been broken like that but the knowledge that it could happen made her feel uncomfortable.

She looked around.

Yeah. No sign of the boys nor any indication of a scuffle.

Odd.

Though, she realised why as she looked at the grass and where she figured Zayden and Harley were originally.

Two darts.

Karen approached them and lowered her head to the darts.

She didn’t know what was inside them not who had made them, but she knew who would know.

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony looked out the window in the direction Karen flew.

He felt a little uneasy about the actions of Harley and Peter.

Harley, he could understand of not listening to his words properly but not Peter. Peter was a very reliable teenager and intelligent enough to not do something like that.

Yet, Peter is Spider Man so Tony figured that perhaps he’d be able to take care of both of them as he had seen it happen a few times.

That is what he hoped at least but he got the gist that something was up.

“Boss.” Tony blinked at Friday’s words. “Karen sent me a message to bring everyone to one of the labs.”

“Why?”

“I have no idea. She just told me to do so.”

Tony raised an eyebrow but told her to tell everyone else and that he’d meet Karen in one of the labs. Apparently Karen had already gone to them as Friday had let her in one of the secluded doors and entrances.

What had she found? Certainly she would’ve informed them of any information and Peter and Harley would’ve come through the door and craving lunch.

So, what was going on?

He stepped into the lab and noticed Rhodey and Bruce standing in the lab, discussing something between each other. Karen was perched on one of the shelves on the well, her gaze focused on him when he entered.

“Iron.”

“Karen.”

Karen shook herself out, strangely animalistic. “I have found something that you should study and look at.”

“What is it?” Tony asked as he approached her and she clicked her tongue out at him.

“Put on gloves. It would be best to not taint the objects I have found.”

Tony looked at Bruce and Rhodey, barely noticing that Bucky, Hope, Scott, Pepper, Thor and Loki enter the lab as well. He agreed to that and all of them put on gloves, even though Loki argued about it but backed down when Karen almost lashed out at him.

She dropped what looked like darts on the table in front of the group before going back to the bench with a silent huff.

“Darts?” Rhodey asked.

“Where did you find them?” Tony asked as he and Bruce looked over the darts, picking them up and keeping them away from bare skin.

Karen shifted. “Where Harley and Peter were meant to be.”

Tony noticed Scott, Bruce, Rhodey, Thor and Loki glance at Karen with expressions that he couldn’t decipher.

“Where?”

“The clearing near the centre of the land.” Karen said. “It’s about fifteen-twenty minutes away by foot.”

“That far away?” Pepper asked, surprised at the location. Tony understood. He wasn’t expecting that area specifically. Yet, it made no sense since it was still a far distance from any edge of the land.

“That is where the hoverboard was located.” Karen said. “Boss doesn’t like having it being out of his sight in case something bad happens with the wiring. Neither of them showed up on my heat scanners.”

That sent a drop of ice down Tony’s back.

“I know that symbol.”

Bucky stared at the darts as he picked one up and studied the symbol that was engraved into the side of it.

“Where from?” Thor asked, looking at it but not noticing what Bucky clearly saw.

“Hydra.”

“Hydra?” Everyone exclaimed.

“The symbol is something that haunts my nightmares.” Bucky hissed, eyes narrowing.

“Why…” Tony paused and sucked in a deep breath. “Hydra…Took Peter and Harley?”

Karen looked down. “It looks to be that way.”

Tony couldn’t find his voice when he realised what it meant.

Peter…Harley…

He felt bile rising up in his throat.

They…They were taken.

“I don’t believe it.” Tony whispered as he turned around to leave the lab.

No. They couldn’t have been taken. There is no way that Hydra could’ve gotten them. Peter and Harley were too bright to be taken especially from a place that was meant to serve as protection to them.

He promised himself that he would keep them safe.

Especially Peter.

Because he was being tracked down by a group of people.

Hydra. That group must’ve been Hydra. Why else would Hydra come and kidnap Peter? They must’ve also taken Harley because they didn’t want witnesses to the event.

He reached the clearing with his mind going crazy and looked around.

The only thing he saw was the hoverboard that was on the ground, with a few broken off pieces. It must’ve bene working but crashed shortly after.

Tony scrunched up his eyes and then snapped them open, narrowing them.

_Hydra killed my parents and forced me to take on a position I wasn’t ready for. Hydra helped push this world into such a disdain and distrust. Hydra wanted to kill him. Hydra…took his kid. Now, Hydra had kidnapped two children who hadn’t done anything to them._

His mind snapped to one point.

_Hydra took my kid…They wanted to kill Zayden and Richard took him to protect him…Now, Harley and Peter were gone. They had gone too far._

~~~~~~~~~~

Friday opened up a map of the world.

Tony stared at it intensely, trying to figure out exactly where Hydra’s new base of operations would be located. It would have to be hidden but somewhat accessible with the right means of transport and travel.

Sadly, that was pretty much anywhere.

The United States were out, cause they infiltrated Shield which meant that their base wasn’t in any of the states. Yet Alaska and Canada could be places to check out.

Germany and Austria were out, since Hydra would consider it too dangerous to remain in either of those countries for any longer after they fell.

“Mountains?” Hope asked as Friday lit up all the mountain ranges across the globe. “They would be secluded areas.

“Maybe.”

“There is still too much land to cover.” Rhodey pointed out.

Bruce looked at the darts and frowned. “Well, one of the darts has a much stronger dosage of the tranquiliser. That must mean that they know Peter is Spider Man and that a higher dose would be needed to be used to render his healing ability moot.”

“Which also means they probably have a way of maintaining him in an enclosed area.” Loki said. “Think my containment in the tower. But, he tends to pull back on his strength so they may underestimate that aspect of his abilities.”

“Where else could they be?” Tony asked, wondering about how quiet his voice was after thinking that it had gotten stronger from being away for a bit.

Friday spoke up. “I can try my best to narrow down all locations to a select few, boss.”

“Thank you, Friday.”

Karen looked at him and Tony had to look away from her.

He let her down.

Her boss was missing and she was created to help him and to protect him and now she wasn’t capable of doing so.

“I’m sorry Karen.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to protect Peter who you are also created to protect. Yet, he is gone.”

Karen stared at him and clicked her tongue, making him turn around to face her.

Her head tilted to the side. “You are looking for him and that is all we can do until we figure out exactly where Boss and Harley have gone.”

Tony looked at Karen and felt relief fill him. So she wasn’t planning on ending his life just yet. He didn’t know why he thought that, Karen had no issues with her code which she let him look over after explaining that she was made when Peter was about fourteen.

“You are okay with it?”

“No.” Tony waited for her to explain. “I just know that my boss is incapable of keeping his strength and refusing to join in with stupid plans. That is most likely what happened. Harley dragged him towards the clearing and Boss couldn’t deny his plans and agreed to go with it.”

“You sound really certain.”

“I know his friends. Though most of the time he is just there to watch his friends fail at whatever they wanted to test.”

Tony wasn’t even sure how she was able to sound fond and exasperated at the same time. However, she was a certain type of AI, much like his own, having her own emotions and understanding of such thing. Perhaps she did more so than normally because she was the AI of a teenager.

Karen just stared at him, more intensely.

He turned away from her.

“Keep me updated on any information. I will traverse New York to try and see if there is anything I can find out.”

_Especially around the place where that group of people were. Those who were after Spider Man._

~~~~~~~~~~

Darkness.

Zayden hated darkness.

Well, it meant he wasn’t having any nightmares.

He groaned slightly and saw light streaking across his vision. It didn’t change much of the darkness but informed him that his body was slowly beginning to wake up.

He didn’t want to wake up.

Zayden tried to figure out what exactly was happening and going on, and what had happened.

The clearing and Harley pestering him to test out the hoverboard.

Heading away from the compound to quite a distance from it.

Sensing they weren’t alone.

The darts.

Zayden snapped his eyes open and tried to sit up but felt pain flare up within his body. He let out a cry of pain and slumped back down to the cold and hard ground.

“What the actual fuck?” Suddenly he turned his head to look around. _Harley!_

He slowly pushed himself up onto his knees and gritted through the pain and screaming muscles of his body. Damn, this was worse than the time he slept for about ten hours and woke up not being able to move properly. Nor was the time he suffered sleep paralysis worse than this.

Where was Harley?

His head raised up and his eyes shifted to adjust to the low lighting. Damn, his vision was usually faster at adjusting than this. What was in that dart that dulled all his senses. Or, was it something else?

Something stronger, mayhaps?

However, the panic that was rising up inside him calmed and lowered down when he saw Harley’s sleeping figure in the cell opposite his. His body raised and lowered with deep breaths of sleep and Zayden could still hear the low beating of his heart.

_Thank God._

“I’m glad you are awake.”

Zayden turned his head to the side to see a figure approaching him from a door that had opened. Without his awareness. Was it always open? Did it open when he was checking over Harley? Whatever the case it worried him and his senses.

“Who are you?” Zayden hissed out.

“Don’t remember me?” Red Skull asked as he smiled sweetly at Zayden.

Zayden curled his lips back and felt his entire body tense up.

Great.

This day couldn’t get any worse. Or whatever day it was.


	25. Chapter 25

Zayden hissed and snarled lowly when Red Skull took a step closer to the cell.

Everything about the situation was screaming at him to run away as fast as he could. Get away from the obvious danger. Yet, he couldn’t. He couldn’t even stand up higher than his knees.

He was receiving conflicting points of information.

His more logical side of his brain was telling him that running away was useless. He couldn’t even make the attempt to do that. Zayden even doubted that he could break out of this cell if his senses felt as though he was being surrounded by syrup. Everything was dulled down.

His instincts screamed at him to run. To get out of here. Regardless of the fact Harley was still there and would most likely get tortured for that. Yet, as he was in a cell he couldn’t get out and so his instincts were telling him to fight back.

Zayden yanked his hands and froze, feeling something cold circled around his wrists.

His gaze landed on the chains that kept his hands tied to the ground. He could still move around a bit but he realised that it would prevent him from escaping any further.

_Well, shit._

“Problem, little spider?”

Zayden snapped his eyes up and glared at Red Skull’s obnoxious smirk. Clearly finding enjoyment of his misery and unease, not caring about the psychological torment that would be inflicted upon them.

Pfft.

Who was he even kidding?

Of course, Red Skull wouldn’t give a single fuck about psychological torment.

When has he even considered that option?

Red Skull wouldn’t give a fuck about that as long as he achieves whatever _he_ wants.

“I asked you a question, little spider.” Red Skull hissed and spat, making Zayden flinch away from him as much as he could.

“I have to answer?” Zayden responded, eyes staying narrowed.

“What do you think you have to?”

“A choice to make my own decision on whether or not a should answer.”

Zayden felt smug at the annoyed expression that settled on Red Skull’s face. Hey, he had a tendency of pissing adults off in these situations . Might as well use them to his advantage.

Yet, Zayden had considered that it could be dangerous to his mentality. He would cross that bridge when he comes to it. Not right now.

“Answer, you insect.”

“I’m an arachnid, actually. Not an insect.”

Okay, perhaps he should stop himself from being a smartass. This is gonna turn around and bite him in the ass considering he is in a lower position right now since he is trapped and contained within a cell.

“Ugh…”

They snapped their heads around to see Harley shifting in his cell.

_No. No, no, no. Don’t wake up._

Harley shifted slightly and Zayden hissed out a low, “No! Stay asleep!”

“Why, little spider?” Red Skull asked. “Why shouldn’t your friend wake up?”

“Stop calling me little spider.”

“But you are a little spider.”

God. Zayden wanted to punch Red Skull in the face and wipe the smug look off of it. It was obnoxious and Zayden wanted to show him what he was messing with.

That was actually a stupid idea but it didn’t stop him from wanting to do so.

“Peter?” Harley sounded so confused and disorientated.

He tried to push himself up but was unable to do so. Yet, he managed to lay down and face towards Zayden and Red Skull, expression confused and very clearly lost.

“What?” He looked between them. “Peter?”

Red Skull’s grin looked down right evil, pretty fitting actually. “Hello, Keener. Little Spider here was just talking about you.”

“Little Spider?” Harley looked at Zayden, trying to figure out what Red Skull meant.

Zayden ignored him. “What do you want?”

Red Skull laughed, sending shivers down Zayden’s spine. “You know exactly what I want, Little Spider.”

“I…I can only imagine it…” Zayden said.

“Shame, doesn’t intelligence run through your family?”

Zayden gritted his teeth. Yeah, of course Red Skull was going to reveal his secrets to Harley. Maybe he can ease the tension and keep the secret from Harley for a little bit. It would be useless but he could try at least.

“The Parker family is intelligent.”

“The Parker family is not what I am talking about.” Red Skull hissed.

Harley remained silent as Zayden dug his fingers into the ground below him.

“How did you even find out about me?” Zayden asked instead, suddenly curious as to how Red Skull found out about him. Considering no-one knows that Mary and Richard’s actual son died young.”

“It is not every day that someone gets bitten by a radioactive spider, especially when the lab is connected to Hydra.” Red Skull said.

“Of course.” Zayden murmured. That was not a surprise. It made the most sense.

“Spider Man?”

Zayden winced. This would be difficult to explain.

“Yeah.” He looked at Harley who just looked confused but he was relieved to see that Harley was becoming more and more aware of his surroundings.

_Please don’t react badly. Please don’t._

“Though, you are avoiding the question.” Red Skull continued as he began to walk down between the cells.

“And?” Zayden hoped he could keep Red Skull’s attention from his plans and keep him talking about things that don’t matter.

“Intelligence may run through your family, yet…I want revenge on the Starks.”

“Why?” Harley asked this time, surprising Zayden that Harley was talking with Red Skull who anyone can tell is dangerous and you shouldn’t really interact with if you can help it.

“Why do you think?”

Harley shot Zayden a confused look.

“Howard Stark helped with the creation of Captain America who ruined my plans for the world.” Red Skull hissed as he looked up at the ceiling and wall.

“So you want revenge on them for that?” Harley pressed, not catching Zayden’s annoyed expression that clearly said to not continue talking and to keep quiet. Of course Harley wouldn’t heed his warnings.

“I already had.” Red Skull sounded so satisfied. “With getting the Winter Soldier to murder Howard and Maria Stark.”

He looked back at Zayden who glared at him. “Though that wasn’t everything that I realised I could do.”

“Just because Harley may be getting adopted by Tony Stark doesn’t mean you can harm him.” Zayden knew what Red Skull meant but just hoped he can keep the conversation going without revealing _that_ secret.

“That is what I want to do.”

“You want to kill me?” Harley sounded so small and terrified, understandable.

Zayden had become pretty used to these comments and ignored them mostly. Except, he did fear his life because Red Skull would be capable of ending his life. His senses weren’t fully working which meant that it would be easy for Red Skull to kill him.

Red Skull’s laugh was loud and dangerous.

“Do not think you are worthy enough of that. I would get one of my subordinates to kill you.”

That was just horrifying to hear.

“You know who exactly I want to kill, Little Spider, and it isn’t this brat.”

Zayden sucked in a deep breath. Red Skull had realised that he doesn’t want Harley to find out about who he really is. Now he was using it against him.

“You will be a little disappointed to realise that it won’t work.”

“How so? It seems to be working.”

Zayden felt sorry for Zayden. He was confused about everything that was going on. Just finding out that Zayden is Spider Man and not being able to ask questions about that since Red Skull seemed very set on getting Zayden to reveal who his parents are.

“They don’t know.”

“They do not?”

“Sorry to burst your bubble.” Zayden smirked lightly, proud that he had managed to stump Red Skull.

“Yet you were at the compound…”

Zayden realised why Red Skull was confused. Why would Tony Stark have his son at the compound if he doesn’t know that he is his son?

“They know I am Spider Man and wanted to go over my suit in a safe environment.” Zayden laughed bitterly. “Not so safe now, huh?”

“They knew?” Harley asked, snapping out of whatever was keeping him quiet.

Zayden nodded mutely as he looked back at Harley. “Yeah, they do. They promised to not say anything though.”

Red Skull seemed to get over his surprise and snarled. “Well, that doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t?”

“No. Because I will still make you wish you were dead.”

“Too late.” Zayden sighed. “I wish I was dead every morning I wake up.” It sounded so deadpanned and Zayden noticed Harley snort quietly to himself but felt proud when he saw the conflicting look on Red Skull’s expression. One side surprised at his statement and the other side pleased that he thinks it would be easier to break him.

Well, too bad. He was gonna make it difficult to break him.

Red Skull is gonna wish he never did that.

“Your family has ruined my life.”

“Pretty sure you did that yourself.”

Red Skull snarled. “You Starks are all the same, aren’t you?”

Shit.

Well…Zayden should’ve seen that one coming. He kind of walked into it as well.

“Stark?” Harley asked, voice laced with confusion and shock. The realisation that there was more to Zayden than he previous thought.

“Zayden James Stark.” Red Skull sneered. “You said nothing to anyone, keeping it a secret and look where it has gotten you.”

Zayden growled. “Guess what. They don’t know who I am! Killing me is fucking useless!”

Harley squeaked. “They don’t think you are already dead though.”

“Well, we might as well inform them of your actual death, hm?” Red Skull hummed. “You managed to evade me for so long and now I have you right here.”

Zayden gulped and noticed Harley also tense and try to tug on the restraints and bit his lip to keep his mouth shut. Apparently he realised that it would be best for him to be quiet.

“I have no need to kill you just yet.” Red Skull looked thoughtful. “Your blood is something I’ve wanted to look at.”

Zayden pulled away, forcing himself as far away from Red Skull as possible, ignoring the sting of the chains digging into his wrists. He could smell his blood as his senses began to rise back up and return to normal. His fight or flight instincts were beginning to kick back into play.

Red Skull snapped his fingers.

Zayden didn’t react fast enough as he tried to push back, as he felt the dart strike his leg. Not anywhere else but Zayden could feel his senses beginning to dull back down.

_What the fuck was in that dart?_

“Deal with him and get his blood.” Red Skull spoke to one of his underlings who had approached the cell Zayden was in.

“Come closer, I dare ya.” Zayden curled his lips back, vision focusing solely on the agent.

“Don’t struggle unless you want to make it more difficult for yourself.” Red Skull spoke.

Zayden squirmed but as he felt the needle jab into his arm, he realised that if he didn’t want to lose anymore blood, he would have to remain still. It was the longest three seconds of his life before they pulled away, leaving the section open and still bleeding.

Shit.

This was terrible.

Zayden shook his head as he noticed Harley’s worried expression. He knew full well that he wasn’t alright.

“See? That wasn’t too difficult.”

“What are you doing with my blood?” Zayden asked as he met Red Skull’s face, really, really wanting to punch him in the face.

“A friend of mine wants to evaluate it.”

“What?”

Red Skull didn’t respond and turned to his underling. “Send it to him. He has done everything to this point of time with keeping a track of him. He wants answers, that will give him those answers.”

Zayden frowned. “Was…It one of the Oscorp scientists?”

Red Skull smirked as he began to walk away from the cells. “Maybe, but that is not something you will ever find out.”

The door slammed shut, sending everything into darkness.

“Peter?” Harley asked, voice echoing.

“It’s Zayden, you already know.” Zayden sighed.

“Zayden then.” A beta of silence. “What will we do?”

“I don’t know…” Zayden admitted.

_But I will make sure that at least you won’t die here._


	26. Chapter 26

How long had it been?

Zayden was not aware of time passing.

He knew it must’ve been a few days at least but honestly there was no way of figuring out exactly how long had it been.

“Zayden, you alright?” Harley asked as he sat up cross-legged, facing him with a conflicted expression.

“I’ve felt better.” Zayden muttered staring up at the ceiling.

“What is he going to do to us?”

“I don’t know.”

Zayden only knew one thing though.

He didn’t want Harley to get into harm’s way.

The door cracked open and someone entered with a strong pungent smell following him.

“What the fuck is that smell?” Harley asked, covering his nose and mouth to try and block the smell from intruding on his mind.

“It’s your food. Boss decided you should have something to eat.”

Zayden scowled. “It’s old food.”

“It’s still food, is it not?”

Harley spat as it was placed inside his cell. “Fuck that, we’ll get sick.”

“Then you won’t eat, simple.”

The person turned around and walked back out and slammed the door behind him, the sound made Zayden hissed and try and block his hearing to avoid a headache coming on. Even though it was useless since he could already feel a headache encroaching on him.

Harley kicked at the plate and scowled. “I won’t eat it.”

Zayden sighed and closed his eyes to try and ease his mind.

“Zayden, can you eat the food just fine?”

“Possibly.” Zayden said, cracking an eye open slightly before shutting it once more.

“Do they really think we’d eat it?”

“Maybe but I’d eat it regardless.”

“Why?”

“Cause it would kill us faster.”

Harley just blinked at him, probably wanting a better comment rather than him pretty much just saying he wanted to die.

“Seriously?”

“What were you expecting me to say?”

“I…I don’t know.”

“Well, I said what we were both thinking.”

“No, only what you were thinking.”

Zayden snorted as he turned his head to look at Harley who wasn’t looking at him and instead was staring at the door. He followed his gaze and heard a noise from the other side and pushed himself up.

“Harley, keep quiet.” Zayden hissed, body and mind straining as he thought over everything that could possibly happen.

“Why?”

“Because they aren’t after you, they just wanted to capture both of us so you didn’t run off and tell Tony about what happened.” Zayden hissed quietly.

“Won’t they want to kill me as well then?” Harley asked.

“Pfft.” Zayden scoffed. “They don’t know I am their child.”

“So?”

“Killing either of us would be pretty pointless, in the grand scheme of things.”

Harley stared at Zayden. “And, how would that be? Killing me…”

“Would ruin their plans as I won’t be telling them of my relation to Tony Stark and Pepper Potts any time soon.”

“So killing you…”

“Would ruin their plans as I would be dead and any rational person would expect them to kill Red Skull for killing me. Also, there is the chance that it won’t work with leaving you alive and they might even consider that you aren’t telling the truth of who I am.”

“Why would I lie?”

“To get back at Red Skull. I dunno.”

Harley was silent as he considered this aspect.

It was unlikely that Harley would but it wasn’t something that should be brushed aside by the high probability that it wouldn’t happen. Zayden had a feeling that he did overstep that though but knew better than to apologise just yet.

They weren’t alone after all.

“Zayden-“

“Quiet.”

He didn’t mean to sound so harsh but he wanted to get his point across.

Thankfully, Harley snapped his mouth shut.

The door opened once again and the same person returned and stared at them and looked down at the plates that hadn’t been touched.

“I thought you two would be hungry.”

“We were pondering on whether or not it would be better to die from starvation or poisoning.” Zayden said simply.

“You are going to wish you had eaten.”

“I wish I had gone out but usually there is no consequence of not doing so.”

“Believe me, eating would’ve been an easier way out.”

“We’d eat the food and Red Skull would throw us out so the elements kill us first.”

“If Boss truly wanted that he would’ve done that by now.”

Zayden glanced over at Harley and hummed. “True, but then he’d lose us and his leverage.”

Harley muttered under his breath. “Red Skull may seem to be an idiot but he isn’t that stupid.”

That almost made Zayden burst out laughing but he was able to hold it in just in case.

“However, you will wish that Red Skull had done that instead.”

Zayden and Harley only watched as he grabbed the plates and left once again.

However, neither teenager had the ability to ponder the man’s words for much longer than a few seconds. Barely enough time to actually realise what had been said and what the implications of those words were.

Zayden’s hair stood on end as he realised that something was wrong.

A scream ripped through the air.

It was only when Zayden had slumped forward and felt his face slam into the cold, hard ground, that he realised that he was the one who screamed. Pain seared through his body from where the chains around his wrists and ankles were.

Zayden hissed and tried moving his arms but they felt like lead and the pain was too unbearable.

His fingers weakly scratched at the ground but it seemed as though his fingers were not even connected to his body.

Hazel eyes fluttered open as his vision remained blurred and fuzzy. Trying to push himself up was difficult and was better to just not even attempt at any further.

The floor brought a sense of relief to him and his eyes slipped shut once more.

“-Den. Zay-. Zayden. Zayden!”

Zayden winced at the loud noise from Harley’s cries.

“Quiet, please…”

He heard Harley gulp but knew he had heard him and listened.

A deep laughter ran through the room. “Want to give up, Stark?”

Zayden snarled and pushed himself up. “I’m a Stark. When do we ever give up?”

He noticed Harley’s look of amazement but worry and he hated it. Harley should never be in this situation. None of them should be, but that was against the point.

“Stubbornness is a trait your family has been cursed with.”

“Funny. I considered it a blessing.”

“One man’s curse is another man’s blessing.”

Zayden spat out onto the ground and noticed the flecks of blood within the saliva and froze. What part of his body had been injured and was now bleeding? He couldn’t feel it at all, nothing indicated to him of the specific part of his body that was wounded.

Another shock went through his body to the point where the chains actually burnt his wrists and ankles. The skin lit up red from the heat and Zayden felt as those the chain was actually melting his skin.

“Zayden!” Harley cried. “Your wrists!”

Well, seemed like his wrists were actually being affected by the shocks.

When the shocks faded and died down to the point that Zayden was actually able to think, he opened his eyes and felt his vision go orange for whatever reason. His body shook and felt his world tilt as he slammed against the ground.

The orange confused him and squeezed his eyes shut to hiss out at the sensations.

_Why is my vision orange?_

_Zayden._

Zayden almost whimpered but bit the inside of his cheek to avoid making any noises.

“Why are you doing this to him?!” He heard Harley’s voice grow faint and distant.

_Zayden. Listen to me._

_Who?_

_Already forgot me?_

Zayden scrunched up his face as he tried to locate the voice in the memory of all voices he kept in his brain. Who did that voice belong to? He knew the person, he’d spoken to them which that he was certain.

“I already told you why I am doing this?”

_Infinity?_

_Glad you remembered me, child._

_You aren’t easy to forget._

_Good to hear._

“It makes no sense!” Harley’s voice sounded desperate.

_Infinity…_

_Yes, child?_

_What…Why is my vision orange?_

_There…It is hard to explain but you’ll see why sooner or later._

“How does it not explain it?”

“His grandfather had ruined my plans.”

“You can’t blame someone for something their ancestor did!”

Zayden wished Harley would keep his mouth shut because he could tell that Red Skull was beginning to get irritated with Harley’s words. Harley was about to plunge into dangerous waters while Zayden had gotten used to the water and could handle it much easier than he could.

“Hmph. Your morals don’t matter here, child.”

“But-“

“Harley!” Zayden yelled as he sat up finally.

“Zayden…” Harley turned to face him, looking terrified and Zayden briefly wondered how he looked to Harley right now.

His fingers dug into the ground and felt the blood running down and pooling on the ground where his hands where. He could even feel the skin of his body shifting as another blast of electricity shot up his body and ripped at the skin.

“Don’t. Say. Anything.” Zayden hissed lowly.

“But your life…”

“Is not more important than yours, so shut up!”

Harley didn’t know how to respond to that so wisely didn’t try arguing with him about it.

“How cute.” Red Skull sneered. “Too bad it’s not going to change anything.”

Zayden looked around, trying to locate where Red Skull was and growled lowly in his throat. Where was he? Scared? Not likely. Red Skull probably just didn’t want to be close in case something happened.

“Why are you doing this? To do more damage to Tony Stark’s life?” Zayden asked.

“I am doing this because I can.”

Zayden felt horror creeping up inside him. He could feel something stirring around him and looked back down at his hands and the blood that consistently ran down his skin.

_Why am I not healing?_

Another electric shock surged through him and Zayden slammed his head into the ground to try and replace the pain with something else. Thankfully, that time it didn’t last nearly as long as it had happened before.

A choked sob escaped his lips as he cracked an eye open to see some blood landing on the ground beside his face. Well, seems like his skin had ripped and was now bleeding from scratches across his face.

“Leave him alone!”

“Harley, shut up.” Zayden snarled but Harley ignored him. “I can handle it.”

“No! You can’t!” Harley cried.

“He’s right.” Red Skull’s voice was eerily calm but held a deep, disgusting satisfaction at the sight before him of the two teenagers.

“What?” Zayden raised his head and shook it to try and clear out his vision once again.

“He’s right that you can’t handle it, Stark. I was wondering if it would work an it seems like the Power Stone has managed to do what I wanted it to do.”

“Power Stone?” Harley asked, genuinely confused.

“How…How do you have the Power Stone?” Zayden asked instead, spitting out some more blood that pile dup inside his mouth. He shouldn’t have it. The stones are highly protected, aren’t they?

“Oh, someone gave it to me not that long ago and said I should use it to gather the Mind and Time Stone that reside here on Earth.” Red Skull slowly smirked. “But that now also includes the Space Stone.”

Red Skull sighed dramatically. “However, I figure di might as well destroy Stark first and foremost and using you two is the best way I figured of doing just that.”

“It won’t work.” Harley tried to argue.

“Oh, but it already has.”

Zayden shook his head. “How are you using the Power Stone?” Is that what the mysterious energy was that he could feel in the room and around them? Seems plausible.

“How do you think I am? It is the reason why you aren’t healing properly.” Red Skull said. “The Power Stone is nullifying the power of your enhanced healing.”

Shit.

The lights flickered.

Red Skull let out a loud call to those around him.

“Keep an eye on them and inform me of any changes in them.”

“Yes boss.”

When the lights went out, it left Harley and Zayden alone in the dark.

Well, turns out Zayden’s life could actually get worse.


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter

Water dripped from the ceiling and landed on Zayden’s head as he stared at the rocks. He wondered about where they were. Judging by everything he figured that they must be in a mountain, but where exactly was difficult if they had no idea of the outside surroundings.

Water?

“Are we in the Himalayas?”

Zayden didn’t realise that he had spoken until he voice echoed around the space.

He heard Harley shift on the ground. “Possibly. I haven’t really thought about it.”

Zayden sighed and stretched his arms above his head as much as he could. The silence was unbearable because very clearly they were avoiding the conversation that was looming over their heads and consciousness.

“Harley.”

He hummed in acknowledgement.

“Why did you want to take the punishment instead?” Zayden was conflicted in what would be Harley’s reasoning. He really didn’t want to know the answer to it but he needed to hear it from Harley himself.

Nothing else could do but the truth.

“Why can’t I?”

Harley was avoiding it.

_Damn it, Harley. Please just answer._

“I’m being serious Harley, answer the question.”

“Being able to take it isn’t a good enough reason to deal with it.” Zayden looked over at Zayden who was resting on his side but back was facing him. “I can at least take partial parts of it.”

Zayden frowned. “You don’t deserve to deal with that pain. It’s terrible and unbearable. Red Skull would never let you go easy if you asked.”

Harley looked over his shoulder at him. Thankfully he looked fine and only slightly weak from the lack of proper food and water, but they were supplied with it from time to time in order to keep them alive.

“I know that.”

“So why do you want to take it?”

“Because if I do end up dying your secret would be safe.” Harley said.

Zayden sighed and looked back at the ceiling. “Why? If you did die and I got rescued then I would slip up and tell the truth. I might even be blamed for your death because of it. Because Red Skull is after me not you yet you would’ve died.”

Harley sniffed and curled in on himself. “But…It wouldn’t be an issue for you.”

“Don’t fucking say that!” Zayden snarled, jerking up. “Don’t fucking claim it would make everything better! Because it won’t! It won’t make anything easier! For anyone!”

Harley was silent and muttered quietly. “Sorry…”

Zayden took a deep breath and ran a hand down his face. “No. I overstepped that. I shouldn’t have yelled at you for that.”

“I shouldn’t have said something so careless.” Harley said but Zayden could tell he was upset over the entire thing.

“I just don’t understand.”

“With what?”

“About how accepting you are of dying for me because Red Skull wants to kill one of us to prove a point.” Zayden really couldn’t wrap his mind around it. They had a rocky relationship, why was Harley so set on it?

“Because…” Harley fell silent clearly tried to figure out how to explain it all. “Then…You have something to live for.”

“And you don’t?”

“You have your girlfriend.”

“Are you really bringing Shuri up in this discussion?”

Harley shrugged as much as he could. “You didn’t argue about your relationship.”

Zayden sighed as he flopped against the ground. “We aren’t in a relationship.” Then he paused and frowned. “Are you jealous about it?”

“No.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

Harley sighed. “I…I won’t get in between you, I know you care about her in that sense. Seriously, I don’t even think that way anymore.”

Zayden looked at him. “Really?”

“Come on, you have great friends, an aunt who actually cares for and loves you.” Harley muttered. “You had everything I wanted. I don’t…I don’t want you to not have that anymore, especially since it was my fault.”

“Your fault? For what?”

“Us being here.”

“What?”

“Stop acting stupid, Zayden. It doesn’t suit you. I wanted to test the hoverboard despite your claims that it still needed to be looked over again. I ignored Tony’s advice and dragged us away from the building to quite some distance away.”

“You couldn’t have felt them, I did and I didn’t react in time.”

Harley let out a laugh. “Bullshit!”

Zayden flinched away at the outburst before almost whispering out, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I got us caught up in this situation. Why should you let me get away with it? You wouldn’t have been caught by Hydra, you wouldn’t be tortured. This entire thing isn’t your fault.”

Zayden wanted to reach out to him but knew that he couldn’t.

“Harley?”

“I hated you. Your life was almost perfect from what I saw. I wanted to show off because you were admired by the others and your friends were always there for you.” Harley seemed to be rambling now and didn’t even hear Zayden’s concern. “After a little while I thought I had a crush on you, but now I don’t think I ever did. It is weird and stupid, I couldn’t and still can’t see anything more between us, not like what I had seen with other people.”

A part of Zayden wanted to speak up but the larger part of his brain told him to keep quiet. They never knew when they’d die after all, so they might as well talk.

“I didn’t know whether my feelings for you were romantic or that I just admired you.” Harley sighed. “Honestly. It drove me insane trying to figure out what it actually was.”

“Harley…” Zayden sighed. “I’m sorry. I should’ve treated you better.”

“I didn’t make it easier for you. I was just as much in the wrong as you were.”

Well, he couldn’t really argue with that fact. They were both in the wrong.

Harley sighed heavily. “I feel so tired.”

“Go to sleep. I’ll watch over you.” Zayden said.

Zayden waited until he heard Harley’s breathing evened out to indicate he had fallen asleep. Then he shifted to sit on his knees and look at his bare arms.

The scratches and wounds littered his arms from the rough ground. His wrists were still pretty much ripped up and still slight blood trickled down his hands and palms. He could feel dried blood on his face that made him feel sick and unsettled.

Zayden shook his head and growled lowly. “I don’t want them to hurt Harley. He doesn’t deserve this at all. Nothing that has come to him he deserves.”

He turned his head and glared at where he was certain that the observation room was located. He knew Red Skull wasn’t there because otherwise he would make his presence aware.

Red Skull hated being ignored.

So Zayden spent majority of the time insisting that Red Skull wasn’t actually there.

He looked back at Harley and quickly observed his body from what he could see.

Nothing.

Well, not new wounds or old that seemed to be irritating.

That was good.

Zayden closed his eyes and tried to think about what Infinity had previously said and some new thoughts that came to the forefront of his mind.

_He should’ve passed out from the lack of blood. So why hasn’t he?_

Zayden breathed out. “Infinity. Give me some guidance here.”

Nothing, but then again he wasn’t expecting any response. He should probably not turn to a spiritual entity for help or guidance. She’ll just say that he’ll know when it occurs.

Okay, time to try and even out of his breathing and calm his mind. Locate a certain part of his thoughts that could trigger something to push him into doing something.

A certain memory of Infinity perhaps?

Something else came to mind.

Instances of Red Skull and Hydra.

Zayden furrowed his brows and clenched his hands. He really hated him, wanting to rip him apart. His head ducked and fell forward with a low hiss as his eyes noticed something starting on his arms.

What?

Zayden couldn’t even think for any longer when the markings that began to run around his arms and underneath his clothes. They began to glow brightly and it almost blinded him.

It wasn’t just coming from his arms though.

It was coming from beside him.

Zayden risked a glance to the side and almost froze.

The bright orange glow had solidified into wings that were only slightly hunched because there just wasn’t enough room for them to stretch out fully.

He couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore and fell forward but instead of feeling the rough ground, he felt the softness of what seemed like feathers as the orange glow settled around him and relaxed him fully into the ground.


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally got this chapter written up. It's summer here in Australia and I can only write them when it is almost midnight when it is not 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

Zayden stared at his hand, raising it above his face as he studied the orange markings that were covering the skin.

_What is going on with these markings?_

He sighed and flopped against the ground, hand coming back to behind his head.

“How long has it been?” Zayden asked out loud, not really expecting a response.

“Dunno.”

Zayden looked over at Harley and raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“What answer did you expect?”

“Dunno.” Zayden sighed and raised his hand once more and watched as the coloured markings began to glow softly. He still wondered who could see the markings.

“What is that?” Harley sounded dumbfounded.

Zayden paused but didn’t turn to look at him. “You can see them?”

“Yeah, it’s a bright light. Pretty hard to miss.”

“But maybe not everyone can see them.”

Zayden didn’t need to look to know that Harley was giving him a look that basically said, “you have gotta be kidding me”.

“Those people would have to be blind, Zayden.” Harley sounded deadpanned and Zayden glanced quickly at him to note that the look on his face. Zayden almost snickered at the expression.

Harley looked so done with him. He didn’t blame him in the slightest bit. Zayden could be a handful at the best of times.

“Anyway, why do you have orange markings?” Harley asked, propping himself up and Zayden shrugged.

“It…It happened like a few hours ago. I don’t know when exactly so I’m taking a rough estimate. I passed out after I saw them and woke up not too long ago to look at them.” Zayden said.

Harley hummed quietly to himself before nodding simply at the statement.

“Hey, Harley.” The male in question raised an eyebrow. “What do you think these markings mean?”

“Why are you asking me?”

“You’re smart so I dunno.” Zayden tilted his head back to continue look at him. “Just figured you could give your own insight in the situation.”

Harley huffed. “Compared to you, my intelligence is nothing. Surely you know what is going on with them.”

“I really don’t.” Zayden was being honest. He hated not knowing something but he wouldn’t mind having some extra assistance to figuring it out exactly.

“Right…”

“I’m being honest.”

“I believe you.” Harley sounded like he didn’t but Zayden wasn’t going to comment on it and make the situation worse. “But, I don’t have a single clue.”

“Fuck.” Zayden slammed his arm onto the ground. “I’d feel better about the markings if I had an inclination of what it could be.”

Silence surrounded them and Zayden closed his eyes to try and calm his racing mind.

“Actually…” Zayden perked up, curious at Harley’s words. “You might not know this, but now that I think about it, it does look familiar.”

“How so?” Zayden pushed himself up.

Harley rubbed his arms. “Red Skull uses the Power Stone, right?” Zayden nodded. “Well, sometimes when he used the stone it left purple markings across your skin but only where the wounds are now. The orange markings look like that but cover your entire body instead.”

Zayden looked at his arms and noticed the markings grow paler in colour and almost match his skin tone.

“That…”

“Are there any Infinity Stones that are orange?” Harley asked.

“The Soul Stone.” Zayden muttered.

That made more sense but it still didn’t explain anything in general. Why was he covered in orange markings if no-one was using the Soul Stone? It hadn’t been since in centuries anyway. Why were the markings orange?

Could it have been something else?

“Has anyone checked on the teenagers?”

Red Skull’s voice rang through the air, causing Zayden and Harley to look back at the door. Both tensed up and Zayden noticed very briefly that his energy was slowly returning now that he was focused on a threat.

Zayden growled lowly in his throat and noticed that Harley’s hair raised slightly at the sound. Clearly fearful of what Zayden had the ability of doing.

“Not for a few hours, boss.”

“And why haven’t you?!”

“Because they won’t be able to get out anyway.”

Red Skull spat loudly. “I don’t care about that. If anything happens to them then our leverage will be useless. Stark would never listen to our demands if we let them die.”

“We only need to kill Keener.” Someone cut in. “Stark’s kid is the only one we need to keep alive.”

Harley almost whimpered and Zayden approached the cell and rested his hands against it. The chains dug into his wrists and felt the skin tear ever so slightly, causing more blood to bubble to the surface.

Zayden should really stop himself from causing more damage to himself. That day was not today though.

The door slammed open and Zayden kept himself from flinching though Harley was not as lucky.

“Oh good. You two are still here.” Red Skull assessed them with a grin that still sent shivers down Zayden’s spine.

He’d never get over that, will he?

“What? Did you really expect us to get out by now?” Zayden drawled.

“I was expecting you two to use your intelligence but it seems like you have been left stumped.” Red Skull cackled. “Beaten by cells, who would’ve known?”

“You also used the Power Stone against me.” Zayden hissed.

“True, but I had to make sure that you were going to keep listening to me and not suddenly escape before I wanted you to.”

“You don’t want us to escape.” Harley said.

“Maybe so, but that means nothing.”

“You can’t keep us here!” Zayden yelled. “Soon you’ll be discovered!”

“But today is not today.”

Zayden growled and wished that his body was actually properly working and healed. Certainly he could try and do something about the situation if that was truly the case.

“Also, you two have no idea where we are located.”

Zayden bit his cheek. That was true. They could literally be inside any mountain in any country or perhaps just underground in some sort of apocalyptic bunker which could also be the case.

An apocalyptic bunker inside a mountain perhaps?

Whatever the case, Red Skull was speaking the truth. Even if they got out, they still wouldn’t know where they are in order to escape. Also, without eating or drinking properly the chances of them getting far was slim to none.

A loud rumble ripped through the air, despite how faint it sounded, making them all look up at the ceiling.

Was it going to cave in?

Zayden really hoped not. His strength was not fully back yet so a caved in ceiling would probably be the worst thing to happen to them. Especially since he isn’t even sure if he’d be able to break out of the cell on top of that.

“Boss.” Someone looked in. “There are unwanted guests.”

Red Skull hissed. “Are you dealing with them?”

“We are trying but it…It turns out that Stark seems to know where we are.”

Harley and Zayden shared a look at that as Red Skull cussed and made his way to the door.

He shot a look over his shoulder and snarled. “Well, I hope you two have said goodbyes to your family and those you love because you won’t be getting out of here alive.”

The door slams shut and locked behind him and it left Harley and Zayden in pitch darkness once more.

“Zayden? What are we going to do?”

Zayden sucked in a deep breath before answering. “We are getting out of here.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“Boss.” FRIDAY spoke up from the ceiling which made Tony and Bruce pause in their work.

“What is it?”

“I have detected something in the Himalayan Mountains helped by Karen.”

Tony and Bruce shared a look.

Karen had fled a day after no immediate leads to travel around the world to try and locate any hints and leads on HYDRA. Clearly, anyone could tell that Karen was distressed about the lack of information on Peter and Harley.

So, if she found something then it would have to be important.

“What is it, FRIDAY?” Tony nodded to Bucky who began to move around to gather some of their suits.

“A lead on HYDRA.”

Well, of course it was. Karen would find two different leads, HYDRA or the boys.

“Apparently there is indication of Peter and Harley from some blood sample Karen found that is identical to Peter’s.”

Tony said thanks to her as he took a breath to try and calm his mind at the realisation. HYDRA had clearly wounded Peter and anger flared up inside him.

“Get whoever can come to the Quinjet. We are heading there ASAP.”

“Yes, Boss.” FRIDAY went silent as she did just that.

Tony and Bruce reached the Quinjet hanger to reveal Bucky, Thor, Loki and Brunnhilde standing beside it. Looking at them with expressions of seriousness and bewilderment.

Bucky spoke up once they all got settled into the jet. “Why the Himalayas?”

“It’s far away and getting there can be incredibly difficult.” Bruce explained as the jet shot off.

Brunnhilde grumbled low in her throat. “Well, looks like we have a rescue mission.”

“The mountains will be unstable and it will need to be treated with caution.” Bruce shot a look at Tony for emphasis. “We can’t rush in. It can be all to easy to set off an avalanche.”

“And?” Loki didn’t seem too bothered about that, being a Frost Giant would be incredibly helpful in such a cold climate.

“If one gets set off the chance of rescuing Peter and Harley is basically impossible.” Tony said.

The group looked between each other.

This was going to be risky but they had to take the chance.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Is that a spot?” Brunnhilde asked pointing at an outcrop on the mountain.

They had been travelling for a few hours, thankfully the Quinjet was so fast that the trip was so quick. Tony wasn’t sure if he’d be able to handle any more hours within the Quinjet and still not near the famous mountain range.

“We could land there. It does look stable.” Bruce nodded as Loki and Thor shifted the jet to move it towards it.

“It will still be risky.” Loki said but shrugged. “Yet, we can do it.”

However, the touch down was fine and there was still enough room for everyone to get out and stand a few metres from the Quinjet and still not be close to the drop off. Tony looked at the mountains and furrowed his brows. He needed to get to the boys.

There is no way he’d be able to sleep without having them back at the compound in a safe location.

Though, a niggling thought kept creeping back up on him, they were taken from the land. Right under their noses and he had no idea. He shook his head to clear those thoughts.

That was not the issue any more. Peter and Harley needed their help and nothing was going to stop him from getting them back.

“So, where do we go now?” Thor asked. “There is no indication of anything around here.”

“We find an entrance. Preferably a door.” Tony said as they made their way towards the main mountain. “Keep your eyes open.”

Bucky frowned. “Well, we need to be quick. The landing was not quiet and if there is a base below us then they would’ve certainly heard it. We could have people coming up to try and trap us.”

“Then they will regret it.” Brunnhilde cracked her knuckles and smirked to herself.

Bruce looked at Tony. “I’ll stay with the Quinjet in case we need to get out of here quickly.”

“Good idea.” Loki nodded and grinned at Bruce who looked away from him. Grumbling about the Prince’s attitude and love to drive everyone around him crazy. Loki acted as though he didn’t hear the complaints.

However, Tony suspected that it was just because Loki was used to the comments. He would’ve had to be around Bruce for quite some time for them to be comfortable around each other.

Leaving Bruce behind could’ve been a bad idea but they wouldn’t go too far. Bruce could follow them if he really needed to. It was safe as well. Well, as safe as it could get.

About five minutes later, they all noticed a door that was very cleverly hidden behind some rocks. The door was encased in snow and ice, making it blend in even more. If they weren’t looking for such a door they would’ve missed it entirely.

Yet, before anyone could move towards it, Bucky hissed. “Stop. Don’t go any closer.”

“Why not?”

“There is footsteps and I don’t even know who it could be.”

“Ah, I recognise that voice.” The door clicked open to reveal someone none of them were fully expecting.

Red Skull.

There was no-one else for it to be. That red face was unmistakeable to anyone who knows about him.

“Red Skull.” Bucky hissed lowly.

“Winter Soldier.” Red Skull grinned, which was nothing but pleased but instead evil and sharp. “I am wondering why you came.”

“You know why.” Bucky growled. “You don’t get to kidnap Peter.”

Red Skull laughed. “Is that so? But, I did kidnap him. Worried about how your friends would react to knowing you let him get kidnapped?”

“You are the only one in the wrong here.” Tony said simply, glaring at Red Skull. “Where are they?”

“Hmph, you let them get kidnapped, Stark. Your land is not very well protected. Also, good luck finding the teenagers. Peter and Harley are definitely not going to be able to escape.”

“I doubt it.” Thor said.

Red Skull shrugged. “Even if they did get out they wouldn’t make it out of the mountain.”

Loki stepped forward and Red Skull raised his hand. A device control was held inside it, a blinking red light resided on top of it and Tony stiffened.

He knew what that was.

“One step closer, one step closer and I will cause an avalanche. Which I know you do not want at all. Not with the risk of losing the boys who you have come here to protect and save.”

“You wouldn’t.” Brunnhilde snapped.

Red Skull smirked and shrugged. “You are right. I wouldn’t.”

Tony didn’t like where this was going.

“I don’t want to wait any longer and I wouldn’t press the button if you came closer.” 

What?

That made no sense but Tony’s brain was slowly catching up to what he meant.

“You don’t even need to step closer for me to do this.” Red Skull pressed the button and stepped back through the door. “Good luck.”

The door slammed shut behind him and before they could do anything, low rumbling echoed above them.

They snapped their heads up to see snow and ice beginning to fall from the top of the mountain and they all heard Bruce’s yell behind them from the Quinjet.

“Guys get back here! It’s dangerous!”

Tony didn’t want to move but Bucky dragged him back and called to him. “The base is not likely to cave. Red Skull wouldn’t endanger all of the HYDRA agents inside. There would be enough time for Peter and Harley to get out.”

He didn’t believe him but really couldn’t move and let himself be dragged back into the Quinjet. He only reacted when he felt the jet moving and taking off.

“No! We can’t leave the boys! We can’t leave them!”

“We aren’t.” Bruce said softly. “We aren’t going anywhere too far but we can’t help them if the jet gets damaged.”

Tony shook his head. “No. They are still inside.”

“We know.”

“We have to get them!”

“We will.” Thor said strongly. “We will get them, Stark.”

“It’s just too dangerous to do anything but watch.” Bruce said, resting his hand on Tony’s shoulder. “We have to figure something out when the avalanche stops.”

Tony could barely hear anything more.

The kids.

The teenagers.

He promised he’ll keep them safe.

They had been kidnapped under his nose.

And now they were trapped under an avalanche in a base that seemed to be incredibly difficult to get out of.

No.

He couldn’t lose any more children.

Nothing could help him if they did die.

Nothing would stop him from killing Red Skull if they died.

Absolutely nothing.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took way too long but with the weather messing around and my mind killing me I haven't had the ability to sit down and write two chapters up this week.

“What the fuck was that?”

Zayden stared up at the ceiling and strained his ears to try and figure out what it was exactly.

“An avalanche?” Zayden glanced at Harley who began to visibly shake out of fear. The scent of fear hung heavy in the air and it made Zayden snap his mind to what he should do.

First things first, they needed to get out of the cells they were trapped inside.

If it was an avalanche then they may not even have all that long before it destroys the ceiling and takes them both out. That could be risky but Zayden couldn’t think of a better option for now. He ran his fingers along the chains around his wrists.

“Zayden…What are we to do?” Harley asked, voice dropping in volume out of fear.

Zayden pursed his lips and clutched the chains, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to break the chains around his wrist but he should be able to break the chains from where they connected with the ground. The fingers curled tightly and his knuckles turned white as he focused on snapping them off.

Harley just watched him out of confusion as to what Zayden was trying to do.

“Isn’t your strength gone though?” He asked.

Zayden gritted his teeth and bit the inside of his cheek. “Fear has a way of making you do things you wouldn’t normally.”

“That isn’t what I meant.” Harley squeaked.

Zayden snapped one of the chains despite the pain that flared up inside him at the action. The chain clattered to the ground and he looked back up at the ceiling and frowned.

It creaked and seemed to dip most likely from the pressure of rocks and snow falling high above them.

_We need to get out._

Zayden quickly broke the other chains around his other wrist and ankles to ensure he could move about freely – or as freely as he could. Harley seemed to perk up at the sight, clearly sensing that Zayden had an idea of what to do.

He didn’t.

Not really.

The only thing Zayden knew was to follow his instincts.

He curled his fingers around the bars of the cell. “Harley. I need you to do something, really quickly. As fast as you can.”

Harley looked at him with a sceptical expression. “What?”

“Find a weak point in the cell, and I’ll do my best to make sure that your chains are gone fully.” Zayden explained. “Can you do that?”

“That isn’t a question, is it?”

“Not at all.”

Harley nodded and looked around the bars. Zayden was sure he could do it himself but he needed to study the chains to see the weak points. It would make it easier to break Harley’s.

If one of them had to get out…it would have to be Harley.

“Right here.”

Harley pointed at a spot that seemed more stronger but Zayden didn’t doubt Harley’s instinct on that. His knowledge on metals and all that was something Zayden was envious of but tried his best to not act on those feelings.

Zayden stared at the bars and clutched them tightly before bending his arms and feeling the bars bending under his strength.

“So…I’m guessing the drugs kept your strength down.” Harley said when Zayden stepped out of his cell and approached his. “Or where you just holding back on me?”

Zayden rolled his eyes and scoffed. “Don’t seem to impressed. The Power Stone was nulling my abilities and powers.”

“Can you get me out?”

“I was working on it.”

Zayden found breaking the bars on Harley’s cage much easier. Seems like Hydra knew what they were doing when giving them their cells. They knew that giving Zayden the cell with weaker bars was a recipe for disaster especially since after a couple of days Zayden managed to break out of his own cell.

Harley winced at the snap of the metal. “It shouldn’t be that easy to break the metal.”

“It usually isn’t. It seems like the metal has been rusted by the water and condensation.” Zayden stated simply as he made his way toward Harley and began fiddling with the chains. “Fucking chains.”

“Got it yet?”

Zayden hissed lowly at him before snapping the chains around his wrists off. “You are lucky to only have the chains around your wrists.”

Harley said nothing as he watched Zayden break the chains off and then rubbed them as he stared at the red markings around the wrist. He looked up at Zayden before pushing himself up and onto his feet. His legs shook and he almost collapsed back towards the ground.

“Woah!” Zayden grabbed Harley’s arm and helped him back up. “Careful.”

Zayden heard the ceiling creak once again and this time even Harley catches the noise.

“We should move.” Harley made a move to leave and Zayden quickly followed after him, checking to make sure that he wasn’t going to trip over the ground.

Zayden didn’t know how the surface of the ground was and feared that there would be plenty of cracks that they could possibly not see until it is too late. “Harley, careful.”

“Why?”

“The ground could be rough and uneven.” Zayden said simply but he doubted he could be heard over the larger creak way above them. “Also, we should try and find an area to try and avoid the caving of the ceiling.”

“We need to keep moving.” Harley argued. Zayden could understand why but seriously, he had a bad idea on the ceiling and tried to argue.

Except, he couldn’t even get a word out.

The ceiling cracked and began to cave. Worryingly so.

They both froze as they turned their gazes up. Zayden realised just a bit too late as to what was happening and yelled out. “Harley!”

Harley didn’t move or just couldn’t move. Zayden had to react quickly and leaped forward, pushing him out of the way. The younger yelped as his body slammed into ground, barely able to lift his head before the world shook.

Zayden looked back and almost gasped when he saw the pieces of concrete fall towards him.

Then, it all went black.

~~~~~~~~~~

Harley shook his head as he felt the world stop shaking and the ringing into his ears had died down. His fingers clutched at the ground and almost whimpered out loud when he felt pain surge up his body.

_What happened?_

He raised his head and looked around before letting out a broken cry. “Zayden? Zayden?”

No response.

Panic rose up in Harley and he pushed through the pain to try and sit up and figure out what exactly happened, considering that he was unaware of time passing. It could’ve been a couple of hours or only a few minutes. Regardless of how much time had passed, Zayden wasn’t responding to his calls. Even though, logically he should have if he was close by.

His head snapped around and spotted a cave in just a few metres away from him and he noticed an arm hanging out from the concrete.

“Zayden!” Harley scrambled to his feet as he ran over to the pieces of the ceilings. “Zayden!”

He tried pushing the pieces away and heard Zayden let out a soft and quiet groan. Harley gasped. It turns out that Zayden wasn’t dead. Not yet anyway.

He’d have to move quickly if he wanted to keep it that way, however.

“Zayden. Is it possible for you to help me get you out?” Harley asked, managing to free Zayden’s upper body and moved to freeing his legs. Zayden just groaned and tried to crack his eyes open but ultimately couldn’t and they fell back shut.

“Dunno…” His voice was too soft. Too distant, for Harley’s liking.

Shit. This wasn’t good.

“It’s comfy.” Zayden’s words slurred slightly but he jerked his body when he was finally free from his trap.

“No. No. No, no, no. Don’t pass out on me.” Harley struggled to lift Zayden up, even with only Zayden’s arm being thrown around his shoulders. “You can’t pass out, got it.”

“The darkness is comforting.”

Harley hissed lowly. “Shuri is gonna kill me if you die. Then she’ll bring you back to kill you again.” Maybe that would make Zayden a little more inclined to remain awake.

“She’ll understand.”

Maybe not.

“I like living, thank you very much.” Harley pointed out as he managed to make them through the hallway and stared at the ground and the blockages in certain parts. “Shit. How are we going to get through this?”

Zayden grumbled. “No. You get through it. You should leave me here.”

“No!” Zayden looked startled by Harley’s outburst but closed his eyes once again out of pain. Harley was still horrified by the idea of leaving Zayden behind. “I am not leaving you when I can get the two of us out of here.”

Zayden nodded and his head rolled to the side and it fell against Harley’s shoulder. His entire body slumped ever so slightly and Harley would be an idiot if he didn’t get what happened.

“Zayden?” Harley tried shaking his shoulder but he had no response. Yet, he could still feel Zayden’s faint breathing through his shirt.

Harley looked around and bit his lip. What was he going to do? He had no way of navigating the dark hallways, especially with Zayden passed out and the possibility of his life leaving him before they are able to get out.

All he knew was that he was running on a short time period.

If not to save Zayden’s life, but to also ensure that the next cave in wouldn’t knock them both out again and this time neither of them woke up in time to get them both out.

_What do I do?_

He heard the slight shift of rocks in front of them and Harley snapped his head towards the direction the noise came from.

Was he seeing things?

At the end of the hallway there was a figure standing, watching him and the figure looked smoky and not physical. Harley frowned and tried to focus on it, but the eyes looked as though they held galaxies. That sent shivers down Harley’s spine.

What was that thing?

It raised its head at him before turning around and walking down into the darkness.

When Harley hesitated, it looked back at him and seemed to indicate that it wanted him to follow. Harley figured that there was nothing for him to lose if he did follow them.

So, he followed.

“Who are you?” Harley cried as he managed to manoeuvre himself and Zayden through the hallway, only lit by the figure itself. “Do you want me to follow you or not?”

The figure only looked back at him as if it was saying, “what do you think, idiot?” and Harley grumbled quietly to himself. Best to not piss off a being that he didn’t even know what exactly it was. It seemed like it was wanting him to follow and Harley shouldn’t be one to question help.

Regardless how suspicious it could be.

“This is a recipe for disaster.”

He could feel the ground shake and there was a rumble from all around him. Shit. This was getting worse by the minute.

“Are you leading me to the exit?!” Harley called and heard his voice echo loudly down the hallway and the figure didn’t even look back at him and turned a corner.

When Harley rounded the corner he almost ran straight into the figure and almost screamed when he passed straight through it. It seemed slightly amused but then turned serious once more and vanished out of sight but appeared a little further ahead of them.

Harley yelped when that happened before shaking out of his stupor.

He shouldn’t be so jumpy when it comes to them. He had to get himself and Zayden out of here. He took a deep breath of the air and blinked. He could smell snow and ice…and some fresh air. The figure was helping them.

His feet trailed stiffly as he felt fatigue begin to develop within his mind. Pushing through, Harley pulled Zayden along and he blearily noticed that his breathing had become shallower and more and more uncommon. The only saving grace was that he could still feel his heartbeat.

 _Come on. Come on. Just a little more. We are almost out._ Harley found opening his mouth was difficult as his brain began to lag in what it could and couldn’t do. Apparently anything more than thinking and walking was challenging. Holding Zayden was difficult but Harley was so focused on it that he found himself tripping over every single piece of concrete and broken ground.

“SHIT!” Harley screeched as he managed to miss a piece of concrete and slammed into the ground. He pushed himself up and shook his head before scrambling to his feet. Thankfully, he hadn’t done serious damage but could feel blood running down his face after the unfortunate meeting of the ground.

He wiped the blood away before grabbing Zayden’s arm and heaving him up, finding it much more difficult than holding his weight after he fell against him. “Come on. Come on. We are close to getting out now.”

Zayden let out a low groan. Harley figured that was a good sign and heard the ceiling rumble once again. Now it was closer and he looked up at the figure. It looked panicked and beckoned for him to hurry up.

Harley wanted to scream but yelling was probably a bad idea as he wasn’t sure what would set off the collapse.

He could smell the fresh air and that was the only encouragement he needed. Despite his mind screaming at him to sleep and relax. That wasn’t something he could do, however. The odds were against him surviving the next collapse or fall.

The figure looked relaxed before vanishing and Harley was okay with that fact.

Clearly, the exit was so close.

Turning another corner, Harley stared up at the door and groaned, before leaning Zayden against the wall. He slumped down to the ground and let out an almost silent whine at the action. Harley apologised mentally before checking over the door and slamming into the door.

It let out a loud creak but managed to open ever so slightly. Harley deemed that was alright and retrieved Zayden. No response, but that didn’t worry Harley. The sounds of constant rumbling above him and Harley managed to force the door open despite the stinging and pain that surged through his shoulder.

Harley tugged Zayden out onto the snow and heard the echoing rumble and his feet couldn’t keep them both up any longer.

He felt the snow beneath him before he was even aware that he had fallen. The area was shielded by a cave and they were residing on an outcropping on the mountain that didn’t seem to be in the direct line of the rest of the avalanche. Harley didn’t want to question it.

Rolling over onto his back, Harley felt his vision swarm as his vision blurred and turned fuzzy ever so slightly around the edges. Blinking, Harley turned his head to where Zayden had collapsed and his breath caught in his throat.

He was lying on his side but facing away from Harley. He couldn’t make out the breathing and Harley scrambled to his hands and knees to reach him. Upon reaching him, Harley resting a hand on Zayden’s shoulder and shook him to try and get some response from him.

 _Spiders don’t do well in the cold._ His mind helpfully supplied and Harley checked over Zayden’s clothes. But, even he knew that neither were wearing clothes that were suitable for the cold mountainous weather.

“Zayden. Please…Please, wake up.” Harley pulled him onto his back and bit the inside of his cheek. “Come on. We have to go home. Both of us have to go home.”

Harley shook his shoulders and could only catch the lightest breath of air and rise and fall of his chest. Yet, it wasn’t enough for Harley and he could feel his skin growing colder.

“Come on. Don’t you wanna watch the sunrise?” Harley asked, voice cracking over his words, glancing at the sky to note the lighting of the sky. “It would look beautiful. Don’t you want to tell this story to your friends?”

It was pointless, if Harley couldn’t get Zayden warm then it would all be fruitless.

Harley wouldn’t be able to deal with it, getting this close only for Zayden to die just before help can get to them.

“Zayden! Please…Wake up!” Harley knew he was sounding desperate and could feel the tears running down his cheeks. The reality of him only returning home was becoming more and more obvious now that the rise and fall was barely noticeable. “Please.”

Harley turned his head and buried it into Zayden’s chest. He hoped his warm tears would offer some sort of comfort. Typically, he hated crying but it was pretty stupid to try and hide his distress.

“Please, don’t give up.” Harley whimpered, feeling his fingers curling into the shirt. He blinked and bit his lip as he tried to calm himself down to speak. He could at least try and wake Zayden with his words. “Don’t give up. I don’t want to lose my brother right after I realise it.”

That was not something Harley focused on before but now that life was not trying to kill them he felt like it would be a good time to accept this fact.

Zayden was his brother and nothing could change it not.

“Zayden…Brother…Please…Wake up, don’t die.”

Harley chocked on a sob and didn’t even notice the twitch of Zayden’s fingers. It was until he felt the fingers rest against his back, slightly curling into his shirt. Harley paused out of confusion.

Had he just not noticed that Zayden’s hand had raised earlier?

“Harley…Can’t…Breathe.”

Zayden’s voice coughed out and Harley jerked back and away from him. His eyes were wide in surprise and shock and noticed Zayden’s eyes flutter open.

“What? You call me brother and immediately jerk away?” Zayden teased despite how soft and hoarse his voice was. “I feel honoured.”

Harley shook his head and felt his tears run down his cheeks again before he surged forward and wrapped his arms around Zayden’s chest. He heard Zayden’s chocked out laugh and claim that he couldn’t breathe again. It was pointless as he was evening hugging him that tightly.

“I’m not hugging you that hard.” Harley laughed out, relief washing over him.

He felt Zayden hug him back. “You don’t know that. My wounds are still sore.”

“Shit!” Harley pulled away. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it! I forgot all about the wounds! And I must’ve made it worse!”

Zayden just blinked at him and shook his head. “Harley, calm down.”

“I’m just relieved you are alive, that is all.” Harley mumbled.

Zayden chuckled. “So am I. I like living.”

Harley stiffened. “What about me? I helped you get out of there!”

Zayden’s expression turned soft. “I know. Thank you, Harley. I do owe you a lot for that fact.” He raised a hand and rested it against Harley’s shoulder. “Thanks…Also, you are my brother too.”

Harley laughed loudly. “It turned out that we almost needed to die to realise that fact, didn’t it?”

“Pfft.” Zayden scoffed and waved his hand and then perked up.

“Zayden?”

“Something is in the air?” Harley followed Zayden’s gaze to the sky only to notice the sun was just beginning to show up. “It’s beautiful…”

“Yeah…It is.” Zayden sounded distant and wistful.

So, Harley decided to break the tension and silence. “Wish you could experience this with Shuri?”

“Wakanda is supposed to have beautiful sunrises as well.”

“So you have imagined watching the sunrise with her. You are a whipped.” Harley raised an eyebrow and chuckled.

Zayden blushed and looked down. “I guess you could say that.” He looked back up. “Yeah, something is in the air but it isn’t a threat to our lives. For once.”

“That’s a welcome change.” Harley muttered and froze and narrowed his eyes. “What is that figure in the distance?”

Zayden shook and leaned back and Harley copied him, resting against his side. The shoulders pressed together and looked up at the dark glint in the sky.

Zayden cupped his mouth and yelled loudly, causing Harley to wince away. “KAREN!”

The figure seemed to stop in the air and flew back the way it came. Harley and Zayden looked at each other out of confusion but they both heard the engines of a familiar jet.

The Quinjet!

Harley and Zayden wanted to jump to their feet but their mind was keeping them to the ground. For some reason, they didn’t mind this and just watched as they saw the Quinjet come into view.

Harley sighed and dipped closer to Zayden. “We are saved.”

“Not yet.” Zayden said simply. “It’s still too cold to fall asleep.”

“How are you more awake than me?”

“I was knocked out for a bit so my body was able to recover. You, on the other hand, had remained awake for the entire time.”

“And?”

“Your mind is deeming it safe to relax and sleep. But it isn’t. My mind is running to keep me awake.”

“Fair enough.”

Harley didn’t argue anymore with Zayden and felt his eyes drop but knew he shouldn’t cave until they were safely on the ship and in a warm location.

They saw the Quinjet approach and land on the out crop, blocking the sunlight and Harley blinked at the sudden shadow.

Zayden stood on shaky legs and nudged him up. “Come on. Let’s go and meet them.”

Harley just blinked and nodded weakly as he let Zayden pull him to his feet. They saw the jet doors open to reveal Bucky Barnes and Tony Stark rush out of the Quinjet and towards them.

Harley smiled at Zayden. “We are safe now.”

Zayden nodded. “Yeah, we are.”


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Almost done
> 
> A little filler chapter with plenty of information :D Since I didn't really touch on Zayden's past in this remake

Zayden never thought that the Quinjet could smell so lovely and refreshing. The smell of the metal plane didn’t really scream ‘secure’ to him but anything would be better than the smell that he had to deal with for the past few days.

He tugged the blanket tighter around his body, not wanting to cave and fall asleep. He knew it would be risky to do so and even Harley was struggling to keep himself awake.

The smell of laundry detergent wafted around the Quinjet as Tony handed Zayden another blanket at the shiver that racked through him.

“Thank you.” Zayden’s voice was so quiet and breathy.

Man, he couldn’t wait to actually crash in a proper bed and sleep off his pain and let his body recover. That sounded really good but Zayden just rested his head against the wall of the Quinjet and let his eyes flutter shut while remaining awake.

Zayden felt Tony sit near him. “Are you alright?”

He shrugged and made a noise that indicated ‘so-and-so’. He cracked open an eye to see Tony and Bucky looking at him, clearly showing they wanted a proper response.

“I’ve been better, but Harley is the one that you need to keep an eye on.” Zayden shot a glance at Harley who was staring at the warm mug in his hands.

His entire body was shaking, it was a miracle he hadn’t spilt the hot drink all over himself considering the fact he didn’t seem to be holding to properly. Bruce was crouched in front of him, doing a mild check over for him.

“That isn’t to say we can’t be worried about you.” Tony pointed out as he was given a warm mug by Loki and he handed it to Zayden.

Zayden sniffed it and raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

“A drink.”

“Clearly. But…”

“It has medication.” Bruce said, drawing himself into the conversation. “It’s to help improve your healing factor and increase the speed at which it is working.”

Zayden took the mug and stared at his reflections, blearily noticing the scars that were etched into his face. “It will take some time to heal.”

“How come?” Brunnhilde asked, leaning against the wall, watching the group in front of her.

“Red Skull used the Power Stone against me to null my healing factor.” Zayden shrugged simply. “So, my body just needs to adjust to it.”

Thor and Loki shared a look between each other.

Loki muttered. “How did Red Skull even get his hands on the Power Stone? Last time we checked it was on the other side of the galaxy.”

Thor hummed. “There must be something else going on.”

Zayden shrugged. “Dunno. Red Skull said nothing about where he got the stone from. Only that he was excited to use it against us. You know, the usual thing.”

Tony sighed and rubbed his face with his hand. “You two seriously freaked me out. I need to improve the security around the land. Especially if you two are going to be ignoring my words.”

“Sorry.” Harley whispered, not looking up from his knees.

They all looked at Harley and Zayden sighed. Harley wasn’t going to get over it, was he? Guilt was a terrible thing but you should learn to move on from this.

Like with him and the death of his uncle Ben. He could be guilty but he pushed past it to ensure nothing like that happened again if he could do something about it.

“Not your fault.” Zayden sipped at the drink, immediately feeling the warmth flood his system and body. Already he could feel the medicine kicking in.

“I wanted to head further from the building.” Harley argued but didn’t look at Zayden.

Zayden clutched his mug and growled. “Red Skull was after me. He took you because he didn’t want any witnesses.”

Zayden looked over at Harley to notice that he met his gaze. He looked conflicted but they both knew that neither were in the right of wrong. Both made mistakes and both were at fault but neither could take full responsibility for the event.

Tony shook his head. “You two were meant to be safe at the compound, but…I’m glad the two of you are getting along.”

Zayden laughed. “It only took about a year and being trapped by HYDRA in order for that to happen, huh?”

“Relationships are built on shared experiences.” Harley joked lightly, a grin crossing his face.

Zayden grumbled lightly but didn’t bother arguing with Harley’s point. He was right after all.

Seriously, Harley didn’t give himself enough credit when it comes to his intelligence and quip.

“Well, at least I don’t need to worry too much about you two.” Tony nodded and stood up fully, stretching his arms up and above his head. “Does this mean I can sleep properly at night knowing the two of you are safe?”

“Yes.” Bruce nodded. “I think all of us can.”

Tony hummed. “We should probably say we need two hospital beds made up for them. Pepper can do that efficiently.”

Zayden pursed his lips and noticed Harley glance at him as he continued to drink.

Zayden didn’t bother looking at him. Harley clearly was thinking the same thing he was.

_Did Pepper and Tony subconsciously attune themselves to Zayden because they are his parents even if they don’t know it?_

“Tony?” Harley piped up suddenly.

“Yes, Harley?” Tony turned his head to look back at Harley who tilted his head in confusion.

Harley paused, clearly rethinking his choice of words and closed his eyes. Sucking in a deep breath, Harley opened his eyes again. A sense of courage and determination flashed within them.

“What…You’ve mentioned Zayden a few times but I never was told the full story.” Harley stated simply, keeping his gaze away from Zayden and only on Tony. He couldn’t risk Tony figuring it out.

“Why do you want to know?” Tony sounded surprised at the question, not expecting it.

Then again, none of them were expecting Harley to ask that question. How does one expect that question? Easy. They don’t.

Zayden wondered just what Harley was going to say to explain his curiosity. That did raise some questions that Zayden didn’t even know he had until that moment. Harley never questioned Zayden’s identity, taking it in stride but that possibility was only because their previous situations didn’t really lend to asking questions that were in their mind.

“Red Skull…he thought Peter or I were Zayden, claiming that he wanted to push us to see which one of us was actually a Stark.”

The lie came easily and Zayden’s heart filled with something akin to thankfulness. Harley didn’t have to lie but yet, he still did. He did because he knew that Zayden wanted to reveal the truth himself when he was mentally ready to do so.

“But…How could Red Skull know that Zayden is even alive?” Tony asked, looking between the teenagers. “Or is there something you aren’t telling me?”

Bucky cut in, clearly not wanting to push Zayden and Harley into a corner any further.

“It could be because Red Skull had asked Obadiah to kill Zayden and show him the body so he knew that it did actually happen. Since that never happened then it means that Obadiah never got the chance to do so.”

Zayden didn’t want to say that HYDRA had tracked him down and killed his uncle because he was trying to protect him. That would reveal too much.

“I didn’t grow up with Zayden.” Zayden lied through his teeth, catching everyone’s attention. “My parents…They brought him home one day but had to give him up in order to protect them.” His breath shook. “Yet…Red Skull had no idea about it and got my parents killed because they were SHIELD agents who were working against HYDRA. He hoped that he was with them when they died but that wasn’t the case.”

Bucky paused and glanced at Zayden, with an unreadable expression.

“I am sorry.”

Zayden shook his head. “I barely knew my parents.”

That was true for both sets. Birth parents and parents who wanted to attempt to raise him.

Harley nodded. “Yeah, Red Skull was confused and decided that he wanted to kill us both anyway. So, we wanted to know about Zayden’s abduction.”

Tony fell silent and stared at the group, all wanting his side of the story. He lowered his head and Zayden could tell that he was struggling to compose himself. Not thinking much about his son would prove a shock to his mind when he’d have to recall one of the worst days of his life.

“In all honesty. I screwed up with it.” Tony said simply and looked out the window to the view that surrounded them.

“I knew Richard had a son, in similar age to Zayden. I knew he worked alongside SHIELD but worked with Stark Industries as well to monitor that both agencies weren’t going to do anything wrong. He was one of the peace keepers between us.

“Richard was one of the people I could trust the most in the company. He might’ve been a spy and agent but he said that he wouldn’t do anything to me, not on purpose anyway. I trusted him with Zayden, since he had his own son I figure that they’d be no harm in it.”

Tony fell silent, the truth was rambling out of him before he could stop it.

“Yet, one day that changed. I got a message from JARVIS that HYDRA had broken into the building and seemed to be heading towards where Zayden was located with Richard. Pepper and I got there too late.

“Richard and Zayden were gone. The HYDRA agents were on the ground dead, but some had been revealed to have escaped. Stane was the only one that remained…He said that Richard was working with HYDRA against SHIELD and SI to kidnap Zayden and raise him as a HYDRA agent to turn him against Pepper and I.”

“That wasn’t the case was it?” Harley said, asking the question they all wondered but knew the answer to – except for Tony.

Tony shook his head. “Stane revealed that he sent HYDRA into the building to kidnap Zayden but Richard got involved and had taken the child away. Keeping him from us until it all calmed down. But, even after Stane’s death, we never got Zayden back.”

Harley and Zayden shared a look. Guilt and sadness crept up inside Zayden and he looked back down at his lap.

“What happened to my da…Richard?” Zayden asked.

“I fired him when I never should’ve done it. I should’ve asked him but Stane had convinced us that he was the one to blame.” Tony admitted.

Harley smiled weakly. “But…That means Zayden is still alive and out there right. Maybe he knows who his parents are.”

“That sounds too good to be true.”

“It could be the case.” Loki nodded, raising an eyebrow at Zayden who scowled at him, clearly not wanting Loki to say anything.

_I want to be the one to tell them. Say nothing._

Tony sighed. “It could be.”

Zayden was about to speak up when he felt something brush against him. He glanced to the corner of his eye and saw another Cosmic Entity sitting beside him.

 _“I am Eternity. They can’t see me but best you don’t look at me.”_ Eternity spoke.

Zayden said nothing and gave no indication that there was someone beside him.

_”The universe needs to correct itself and to do so it will do it in an way that you may not like or understand.”_

Zayden said nothing and Tony turned back to him.

“Peter?”

Zayden shook his head. “I’m alright. I think the medication is kicking in properly now.”

“Well, that is a good sign. It means it is working.” Bruce smiled.

Zayden nodded and thought to himself. _What do you mean, Eternity? ___


	31. Chapter 31

Zayden stared up at the ceiling. Seriously, he was getting sick and tired of the view of the ceiling above his head.

As soon as he and Harley got back to the Compound, the two of them were rushed away to let their wounds be treated properly. After two days, the Power Stone’s affect on Zayden had died off and his body was finally able to heal itself without the assistance of any other medication.

The doctors were amazed at it but valued Zayden’s consent and didn’t push for any information nor tested it out for themselves.

“I’m so bored.” Zayden whined as loud as he could, thankfully the rooms were quietened and dulled down so Zayden’s senses would cause him to pass out.

They learnt their lesson earlier when too much stimuli had assaulted Zayden and with his recovered healing ability had made him promptly pass out for several hours until everything calmed down.

Karen huffed from where she was curled up on the table on the other side of the room. “Boss, calm down.”

“I would if I could do something.” Zayden flopped against the mattress, arms raising above his head to curl around the headboard.

“What do you want me to do about it?” Karen raised her head to glance at him with a flick of her ear and tail.

Zayden pursed his lips. That really was the question. What did he want Karen to do? There were a lot of things but there was something he should do. Lest he get yelled at for not doing so.

He had already spoken to Ned and May (who had come by the day prior to check up on him) who were covering up for him. Ned had claimed that their group were worried about where Zayden was but the lie was revolving around the Hoverboard hurting Zayden and Harley and they were just being checked up on.

Now, he knew his friends wouldn’t truly believe it but accept it as the truth until they get told something else – such as the truth.

However…

“Can you call Princess Shuri for me?”

“Can I call her…” Karen seemed to snort. “Of course I can. What kind of AI do you take me for?”

“Oh ha-ha. Just go ahead, Karen.” Zayden shot her a look and she sat up fully, tail flicking from side to side.

Karen looked up and looked as though she was contacting Shuri.

“Got her, but I’m leaving before I can get disgusted by your terrible attempts at flirting.” Karen nodded to Zayden’s phone that showed it was calling Shuri’s number. She leaped off the table and trotted towards the door.

“I do not flirt.” Zayden hissed, eyes flicking back to his AI.

Karen glared at him over her shoulder. “Right. And I’m not an AI.” She looked at the door. “FRIDAY can you open the door?”

“Of course, Karen.” FRIDAY responded.

Karen smiled as the door opened, allowing her to escape the hospital room and into the hallway.

Zayden groaned and draped his arm over his face. Shit. He really wanted to get out of his room and get some actual fresh air.

He was going to go crazy.

“Peter?” Shuri’s voice broke through the silence of the room and it made Zayden jump as he wasn’t expecting her response. Heck, he was expecting her to not answer. He doesn’t know why she would do that but it was what he thought she’d do. “You there?”

“Yeah.” Zayden noted that his voice was raspy and scratchy. He should get some water, huh.

“Oh. Well, it seemed like you were nowhere to be found and your phone just decided to call me.” Shuri sounded as though she was distracted by something on her side of the call. Fair enough, it was most likely more interesting than having to talk with someone who was bedridden.

“Kind of. I am currently bedridden and I hate it.” Zayden huffed, frowning before biting his lip. He should really stop making it seem like people should pity him.

Man, he hates pity.

“But, that will be over soon so there is a silver lining.” Zayden wanted to make it seem like he was better than he actually was.

“When?”

“Dunno. Tomorrow or the day after.”

Zayden looked over at the window and pushed himself up and to the edge of the bed.

“Well, that’s good.”

“Did I call at a bad time?” Zayden asked, noting Shuri’s distraction. “I’ll end it.”

“No!” Shuri cried, causing Zayden to recoil back in shock at her sudden and unexpected outburst.

Just because it wasn’t an unwelcome one meant nothing to Zayden, considering he wasn’t particularly sure how Shuri would take to his current state. It just added to the array of issues that he had with himself, that weren’t tied to his spider side.

Zayden blinked, staring at his phone as the silence began to curl around them, even through the phone. “Um…Purrincess?”

“Don’t.” Her voice cut in, sounding rough and annoyed.

“Call you Purrincess?” Zayden was confused, Shuri didn’t mind it before so what had changed.

_Clearly she doesn’t like you anymore, idiot. Why would a Princess even like a guy like you? She is way out of your league and you are full of issues and problems._

“Don’t act as though you are alright.” Shuri said, and Zayden could hear her fingers flexing against a counter top. “Don’t make jokes.”

“Well, how else am I supposed to deal with my current situation?” Zayden asked, throwing his arms up as he walked away from his phone in an attempt to walk off the kinks and muscles in his legs.

Shuri didn’t respond at all but Zayden didn’t want a response from her.

“Look, I’m fine.” Zayden hadn’t looked over himself properly so he wasn’t entirely sure as how true that statement was but he could always lie.

“I doubt it.” Shuri muttered. “But, I won’t argue with you.”

“Thank you.” Zayden smiled weakly to himself.

Then she spoke up again. “Cause I’m seeing you really soon anyway.”

_Wait._

_What?_

Zayden spun around to star at his phone. “What? Shuri-!”

Suddenly the beeping of a call having been hung up rang through the room, the loud and high-pitched noise made Zayden clutch his ears as he moved to turn off the offending device. Damn, he really needed to get his phone fixed when it comes to that. He could only deal with the noise for so long before it actually began to hurt.

“Young Spider, are you alright?” He heard FRIDAY speak up and Zayden only grumbled at her words.

He would definitely be better if he was actually fully healed. However, even Zayden knew that what happened with the Power Stone wouldn’t be easily brushed aside or gotten over with. The one thing Zayden hated the idea of was therapy.

Speaking of which…

Zayden’s ear slightly twitched when he heard Pepper and Tony walking down the hallway.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I know I hate it but I refuse to let Harley and Peter not receive the treatment that they will need.” Tony sighed, voice sounding distant as though he was only partially aware of the conversation.

“If that is the case, you will have to go through therapy as well. All of you have suffered from Red Skull and HYDRA so you have that connection with them.” Pepper sounded soft as they reached the door.

He heard they stop outside the door and Tony’s sigh.

“I know but still. I don’t want this to affect Peter any more than it has already.” Tony said simply before they continued walking away.

“Plus, he needs to sleep and recover.” Pepper said, and Zayden noticed that she was dragging Tony behind her. Okay, so she was walking away and pulling Tony along.

“But FRIDAY said he was awake.” Tony sounded conflicted.

“He needs the time to reflect and figure out his words without us hovering around him. Let him rest, Tony.” Pepper sounded so done with him and Zayden felt his lips twitch upwards at that.

“Will they be alright?”

“Of course they will. They are strong teenagers.”

“I know, but…”

“Relax.” Pepper’s voice trailed off and Zayden turned away and tuned out the conversation.

He was no longer irritated with Harley, he was his brother. Going so far as to sneak out of his room a couple of times to meet Harley and talk with him. They both got in trouble for the first couple of times but they ended up giving up when both didn’t stop doing so.

Yet, Zayden was forced back into his room for bedrest as his body was taking a little longer to heal and the doctors had grown irritated by his lack of care for himself. Pushing his healing period back for far longer than it was originally.

Zayden shook his head and padded into the bathroom. Just to wash up or check out his stature. It could be hard to see how thin he was by the lack of ability to contain large amounts of food. His metabolism was great but in times like this it was terrible in moments like this.

Hey, he could use the time to look at his wounds.

And clean himself up. Make himself more presentable.

For what, not sure.

 _For Shuri~_ His traitorous mind whispered to him, almost laughing but Zayden squashed them. One thing at a time, perhaps. First, checking out any visible wounds and scars so he quickly stripped himself down while he waited for the shower to reach an appropriate temperature.

His fingers curled around the sink and sighed heavily to himself. “What am I doing with my life?”

He tilted his head up before he lost the nerve to assess any facial scars that were most definitely there. He could feel them against his skin after all. Hopefully they faded in due time, or Loki could help teach him a magic spell that would cover up at the scars.

Well…That was gonna be difficult.

There was a scar that ran down his face, and a smaller one covered his left eye. His right eye had a bunch of marks underneath it, and a large scratch ran alongside his jaw and temples. 

Damn, they looked terrible. Overall, not too bad and looked fine and healed well enough but still too noticeable for his liking. No wonder they wanted to check his brain scans every so often if his face was this banged up.

Shaking his head, Zayden quickly hopped into the shower to have a properly bathe. Body spray could only work for so long and he had only been given the go ahead to have a proper clean, considering before they weren’t sure how his body would deal with it. Now they were certain it would be fine.

And it was.

Zayden clambered out and changed into a pair of sweat pants and a baggy shirt, just for comfort. Deeming anything else not suitable for him lounging around. He collapsed into the bed and groaned into his mattress when he heard another pair of footsteps.

The slight swagger and sway in the steps meant it could only be Bucky.

Looks like that means T’Challa and Shuri were there as well now.

“Can I come in?” Bucky asked as the door opened, taking a step into the room regardless of what Zayden would’ve said.

“Why did you ask if you were going to do so anyway?” Zayden asked, turning his head to look at him. “It was pretty pointless.

“Do you want me here?”

“I never said that I didn’t.”

“Then there is my answer. I’ll leave when you ask.”

That is why Zayden liked Bucky. He made sense and pushed Zayden but didn’t really do it in a way that made Zayden feel as though he was being pushed into a corner. Those were the worst moments.

“So, how do you feel?” Bucky perched on the end of the bed, clearly worried for him.

“Eh. I’ve been better.” Zayden shrugged as best he could.

“We can understand and expect that. But, no negative side effects?”

“Nothing aside from what the doctors have already warned me about, so I guess not.”

Bucky nodded and tilted his head. “Have you told them?”

“Told who what?”

Okay. Zayden did know what Bucky was referring to but he really didn’t want to talk about it.

“Tony and Pepper. About you being their son.”

“Nope.” Zayden popped the ‘p’ and turned away from Bucky but could still feel his gaze on his back. “I’m not in the right mental state to tell them. Harley could if he wanted to but he won’t and I trust him. I will eventually tell them but I don’t know when the best time to do so is.”

Bucky leaned back on his hands and raised an eyebrow while humming to himself. “Fair enough. Are you going to tell Shuri then?”

Zayden shrugged. “I…I guess I should but I’ll do that when I have told Tony and Pepper. You know, things like that.”

“Too late.”

Zayden and Bucky both froze at the voice. They turned their heads to the door to see Shuri standing in the doorway.

“Sorry for eavesdropping.” She did sound guilty but thankfully she just entered the room instead of walking away. “But, I was nearby…”

Bucky looked between the teenagers. “I should go. You two can talk with each other.”

Zayden pushed himself up once the door closed behind Bucky’s departure. “How did you find my room?”

“Karen.” Shuri replied, approaching him and looked over his visible skin and the scars that decorated it. “She didn’t tell me how bad your scars are.”

Zayden shrugged. “I didn’t either until a few moments ago.”

Shuri seemed to hesitate in coming any closer but obviously looked as though she wanted to talk about everything and nothing with him. Zayden wished that she would. To distract himself.

However, something caught his eye when Shuri adjusted herself again.

She was wearing his jacket.

Damn it. It looked so good on her.

He’d never ask for it back. It is official. She was way too attractive in his clothes even if it was just his jacket.

“I’m surprised you’re wearing the jacket.” Zayden coughed into his hand to try and ease the tense silence of the room.

“Oh!” Shuri sounded surprised and looked at the jacket before shrugging. “Yeah, it was just there and I through it on without thinking about it.” Zayden could hear and feel the lies through her words and chuckled to himself.

“Really? Without thinking about it?” His voice was teasing and she narrowed at him and huffed, looking away. Almost pouting but it just resulted in Zayden’s laughter. “I’m teasing you, Purrincess.”

“I know.” She walked over to him and smirked. “Why are you so shocked to see me in your jacket?”

“Well, like I said. You can keep it.”

She rested her knee on the bed, the smirk growing as Zayden gulped out of nervousness. She leaned closer to him, the jacket falling around her in a way that seemed relatively suggestive when her arms moved. The back of the jacket fell backwards ever so slightly.

“What? Like it?” She grinned, eyes sparkling in mischief.

Zayden pursed his lips and keep his eyes locked on hers. He had a feeling he knew exactly what she was doing.

“Well it was my favourite jacket so yeah I do.”

“You know what I mean, Zayden~” Shuri chuckled. “Come on, anyone who does their research knows their child’s name.”

“Fair enough.” Zayden laughed but fell silent when Shuri got even closer. “You know, we aren’t dating so we can’t kiss.”

Not like Zayden had ever had thoughts of that.

Okay.

He had.

Not that he’d ever confess that to Shuri though.

“Shame.” Shuri laughed. “I’d let you do it, if you wanted.”

Zayden bit his lip and let his gaze flicker down to her lips but even he knew not to.

“Nah. I should ask you to be my girlfriend first.”

Shuri sighed. “Fine. I can only dream.”

Zayden wanted to argue but just let his lips twitched upwards. “You may not have to wait that long.”

“Good.” Shuri grinned widely at him and then wrapped her arms around him. “I’m glad you are alright.”

Zayden blinked and smiled to himself. “Yeah…I’m glad to see you too.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Tony looked at his cup of coffee and frowned at his reflection. Man, he was relieved that they had found and rescued Peter and Harley but he could do without that heart attack ever again.

“Tony?” Pepper asked as she approached him and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Come on. We should talk to the boys tomorrow.”

“I know.” Tony stifled a yawn and heard Rhodey walk towards them as he entered the room. “Hey, Rhodey.”

“Tones.” Rhodey smiled at them. “You look better now.”

“Well, I’d hope so.” It had been a couple of days after getting some efficient sleep. Without being plagued by the worries of where Peter and Harley were and if they were still alive.

Rhodey hummed and poured himself a glass of water. “I spoke to the kids. They are recovering incredibly well, even Peter.”

“We’d hope that is the case.” Pepper stood fully up. “After all, he worried us a lot there.”

“Because he is Spider Man or for another reason?” Rhodey asked, tilting the glass slightly at them.

“What do you mean?” Tony looked up at meet his best friend’s gaze.

Rhodey paused and looked down at the water. Clearly there was something he shouldn’t say and had almost revealed it by accident. Tony furrowed his brows.

What was he keeping from him?

“Rhodey…”

“I was just wondering if there is another thing that drove you to saving Peter.” The name sounded strange from Rhodey’s lips as though he was forcing himself to call him that.

Tony froze and noticed that Rhodey’s eyes were full of dismay and sorrow.

“I promised to not say anything.”

The realisation began to crawl up on Tony’s mind. Everything about him, Pepper and Peter.

How Peter looked so much like Pepper but could look like him. His intelligence, his love for protecting others. The fact he is the ‘child’ of Mary and Richard despite looking like neither of his parents.

The fact HYDRA had captured him and Harley’s questions about Zayden.

Peter Parker…

No.

Zayden Stark.

Tony bit his cheek. “Is…Peter is Zayden, isn’t he?”

“Yes.” Rhodey nodded solemnly. “I promised I wouldn’t say anything but…”

Tony pushed himself up, knowing that Pepper was in shock behind him. “We should…We should speak to him.”

Pepper looked at Tony. “Now?”

“No. Tomorrow.”


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I finally worked on this chapter and got it done in like 2 hours (the conversation is different because it holds more impact to the next story with how the story has be reworked)

It was the next morning and Zayden dreaded waking up.

While he knew he should get up to actually start the day he just didn’t want to get up in general. For the life of him, he didn’t understand at all. Zayden groaned and rolled over in his bed, feeling the blankets wrap around him tightly and prohibit him from moving around anymore.

Cracking open an eye, Zayden hissed at the bright lights and buried his face into the pillow.

He let out a groan.

“FRIDAY, why are the lights so bright?”

“Because Boss has requested for you to be up.”

“Well…Tell him that I’ll get up when I get up.” Zayden gritted out and pushed himself up onto his elbows, furrowing his brows and shook his head to try and clear his head.

Why did Tony want him up? Didn’t he know he was still _technically_ healing. Granted, he had been given the all clear the day prior but that didn’t mean much. He was meant to be here for another day or two just to double check before being fully discharged.

Zayden questioned his life for the sixth time in an hour.

His eyes began to slip shut but then FRIDAY had to speak up again.

“I informed Boss but he suggested that you should be getting back to waking up when needed to.”

Okay.

That made sense.

Zayden huffed, muttering out, “okay, okay,” before wriggling himself out of bed. The mattress was so soft and he didn’t want to leave it.

“I hate getting up when I’m still sore.”

He didn’t mean for FRIDAY to respond, if she did then she did there was nothing he could do to make her shut up. He could ask but she was just looking out for him.

“You can return to bed once you finished your shower and made your presence known.”

Zayden tilted his head back and stared up at the ceiling, eyes narrowing at it. “How do I make my presence known?”

“Breakfast is being made.”

Oh. Right.

Zayden shot a look at the clock to see that it was indeed almost seven-thirty. Breakfast would be ready at eight. Plenty of time for him to have a shower and contemplate throwing himself out a window to avoid the conversation he suspected was going to happen today.

Well, better start that shower.

Zayden let the water run down his body as he leaned against the wall, eyes closed in thought.

Talking to Shuri yesterday had eased the tension in his shoulders, especially the tension he wasn’t sure was there. She didn’t hold it over his head, his secret that is. In fact she offered some suggestions in how to bring it up in conversation with Tony and Pepper once everything had calmed down.

They both realised that they could very well know and just didn’t say anything in case they thought Zayden himself had no idea or were waiting for him to tell them personally.

Yet, they both figured that Tony and Pepper were going to grill him and Harley about ignoring Tony’s words and doing the complete opposite of what he had said.

Either way, Zayden didn’t want to have any conversations with anybody until he could go home.

Shaking his head, he decided that he should best clean himself up properly since he’d actually be leaving his room today instead of lounging around in his room like yesterday. Drawing the soap across his body, he hissed at the sting from his still closing wounds. Whatever, it would mean that the wounds would get cleaned and it would help the healing.

The scars were quite literally a painful reminder of what transpired earlier and Zayden wasn’t an idiot.

He heard what they had said.

The scars would remain and be near impossible to get rid of. Even with his enhanced healing, the scars would still be there. Etched into his skin like permanent marks of things that he would just wish to forget.

Like Harley.

Harley had managed to block out majority of the experience except for the bigger and more important details. The smaller points where only he was awake and aware were fuzzy at best to him and blank at worst. Zayden wished he could block out the experience, it would save him a lot of headaches and frustration.

Except, apparently it was frustrating to Harley when they asked him questions that he should have the answer to but just didn’t.

Zayden sighed and turned the water off before quickly drying and dressing himself. The clothes were still too tight and uneasy against his skin. God, he didn’t want to wear a shirt until his scars had healed and the material wouldn’t rub against the scabs.

The blood was getting more and more irritating.

“Young Parker, are you alright?” FRIDAY asked.

“Been better. Some of the wounds haven’t fully healed and still bleed.” Zayden admitted.

“You should get the wounds wrapped up.”

“They have been but they just aren’t healing as fast.” Zayden hissed out as he made sure he had his phone on him – just in case he got a message from one of his friends.

They’d be worried about him, and he was surprised their group chat wasn’t blowing up. Cindy messaged a couple of times but that was just her arranging meet ups when Zayden was finally able to go home. He needed some kind of normality in his life.

Reading his friends’ comments and stupid jokes and puns brought that sense of normality.

Zayden moved towards the kitchen and dining area, unsure of if he should be going there already or wait until he was certain breakfast was done.

“Zay!” He heard a yell and snapped his head around to see Harley skidding around a corner.

Someone was looking healthier.

Well, one of them had to be.

“Harley.” Zayden was able to get out before Harley launched himself at him and tackled him into a hug. Thank goodness for his adhesive capabilities that kept him from falling backwards.

“Oof!” Zayden felt the air leave his lungs and his chest constrict at the somehow tight grip Harley had of him.

Either he’d gotten stronger or Zayden had gotten weaker. Probably the latter. Most likely the latter.

“Nice to see you to, Harley.” Zayden got out and wrapped his arms back around the other. “But…I am still wounded.”

Harley jerked back in shock. “Oh fuck! Sorry, sorry, Zay! I forgot!”

“It’s alright.” Zayden coughed slightly and grinned weakly at Harley, which didn’t help with his case. “Seriously, I’m good. I’ve had worse.” He was expecting worse from Ned when he reunited with his friend. Heck even Cindy could bruise him.

“Are you alright though?”

“Yeah. Great with a calmer mind. I spoke with Shuri yesterday.” The two of them began walking towards the dining area. “Plus, who is going to be at breakfast?”

“Only us, Tony and Pepper. The others are eating in the communal area.” Harley hummed. “Yeah, the Princess came by and spoke with me as well but left as I was incredibly tired.”

 _Fuck. I can’t do this._ Zayden thought but kept his mouth shut. “Oh really? What did you talk about?”

“Jealous?” Harley’s smirk was irritating and he really wanted to wipe it off his face.

“NO!”

“Good, cause I’m not interested in her, you should know that. Plus, I think she was sick and tired of your shit.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Just being honest.”

Zayden rolled his eyes as Harley laughed loudly, it echoed down the hallway. The sound reverberating around the pair as they continued their trek towards the dining room.

“Hey, Zay?”

Zayden made a humming noise of acknowledgement.

“When are you going to ask Shuri out?”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“She’s out of my league.”

“Well, that is true.”

“Thanks for making me feel better.”

“Your welcome.” Harley just grinned brightly, which he shot at Zayden who just rolled his eyes at his antics. “But seriously. You should ask her out. Anyone can tell your feelings are returned. I doubt she’d pay that much attention to someone she doesn’t feel something for.”

“That something is annoyance and pity.”

“Now you are just degrading yourself.” Harley stopped and grabbed Zayden’s shoulder, momentarily surprising the other teenager. “Ask her.”

“I can’t…Not yet.” Zayden sighed out and gazed around to make sure they were actually alone. “Nothing is…It isn’t right.”

“Why not?”

“Cause I haven’t told my parents…”

Harley looked at him and nodded. “I understandable. The second you do tell them you should also ask her out.”

“Not at the same time.”

“Why not? Two birds with one stone and you’d not lose your nerve.” Harley pointed out and was going to continue when Zayden yelped.

He clutched his head, whipping his gaze around to see what had set of his senses and sent his mind into a screaming panic. His thoughts were a whirlwind and he barely noticed Harley approaching him out of worry and concern, hands resting on his shoulders. The voice was too quiet for Zayden to focus on it exactly and he felt his throat close up.

Suddenly, his vision narrowed in on the Vision.

Who was standing in a doorway with Tony, Pepper and Rhodey standing behind him. All of them looked concerned but didn’t step forward.

Vision took a step forward and Zayden recoiled back, Harley looking surprised while the adults seemed to have a flicker of hurt flash through their eyes. He didn’t mean it, but Vision’s presence was irritating him and setting his mind off like nothing else before.

“Don’t.” Zayden hissed lowly. “Don’t come any closer.”

Thankfully, Vision understood and kept his distance respectfully.

Harley shook his shoulders. “Zay?” His voice was so soft, barely away from Zayden’s ear so only he could hear it. “You okay?”

Zayden shook his head, his gaze not leaving Vision and the glinting Mind Stone on his head.

The sight made him feel sick and made him want to run away or attack at the same time.

He felt a low growl rumble through his throat and Harley’s fingers dug into his shoulders as a warning. A warning to keep himself cool, calm and collected most likely but Zayden just wanted to get away from the offending sight in front of him.

“It’s just Vision. He’s fine.” Harley shot a look at the Android, just as perplexed as everyone else.

This had never happened before and seemed to indicate of it happening before at least.

“I don’t…I can’t be here.”

Harley bit his lip and turned his gaze back to Zayden. “Come on. Let’s go somewhere, right? Away? Maybe Shuri has a grand idea for us to try, or you can message your friends. Tell them you are going home in the next two days.”

Zayden didn’t move.

He couldn’t move.

Vision was still there.

He wasn’t moving closer or further away.

Zayden curled his lips back and was vaguely aware of his front canines elongating to match a spider’s fangs. “Don’t.”

Vision was confused, as confused as he could get really. Nothing could often faze him. “Don’t?”

Harley seemed to realise that something was wrong. Really wrong.

“Peter.” His voice was urgent, glancing around. Clearly not wanting whatever was at the threat of happening to happen. It may be too late but Zayden wasn’t paying attention to him.

He was calling for Peter after all, not him.

“Your eyes.” Vision stated and Zayden wondered what his eyes had anything to do with it. “Your teeth.”

Okay, so he was focusing on more obvious things.

“Get away from me.” Zayden hissed, voice dipping in volume but it was still loud.

“What’s wrong?” Pepper asked, sounding too soft, too worried for Zayden’s liking.

Zayden almost snarled at them but Harley jumped in between them. He knew Zayden wouldn’t hurt him.

“Zayden!”

His yell sent the entire area into silence.

You could hear a pin drop or the blood rushing through your veins at how quiet it now was.

Zayden blearily noticed that Tony and Pepper looked surprised but not shocked.

They know.

How do they know?

Zayden snapped his gaze from Vision and narrowed them to Tony and Pepper.

“How…When…How do you know?” He knew he had no right to be accusatory and noticed Rhodey looking guilty.

“You!” He cried, turning to face him, feeling tears brimming he eyes at the betrayal from his uncle. “You promised! You promised you wouldn’t say anything! Not until I was ready!”

“I didn’t tell them.” Rhodey spoke, sensing that he should try and be soft in case Zayden acted out. “Tony figured it out.”

Zayden knew he was telling the truth, nothing was telling him otherwise. He looked down and clenched his hands, fingers digging into his palms.

“I knew I shouldn’t have gotten up today.” Zayden spoke, laughing bitterly despite his voice cracking over his words. “Today was a bad day from the second I woke up.”

Harley looked sad and guilty as he looked at Zayden. “Zayden…”

“Not your fault.” Zayden murmured, not looking at him. “You were just snapping me back.”

Harley cleared his throat. “Come on, the Princess is probably waiting for us in one of the labs. Karen is probably also driving her insane, I did see her making her way towards the rooms that she would be in after all.”

That amused Zayden greatly. He just hoped that Shuri would be respectful and not mess around with his AI. He enjoyed her quips and attitude after all. Not having that would be the worst.

“Zayden…” He heard Pepper’s voice sound around the name. He winced away from her voice. It sounded terrible and it hurt him knowing he was the reason for it. “Zayden.”

Harley nudged Zayden and shot him a look. “Talk to them.”

Zayden nodded weakly. “Yeah?”

“You knew.” Tony said, sounding confused and hurt, maybe a little bit betrayed.

Zayden shifted and rubbed his arms, noting the light scratching over the wounds on his arms that were clearly visible.

“Yes. I’ve known pretty much my entire life.” Zayden admitted, trying to keep his voice clear so they could hear him despite not wanting to really talk about it.

“And you didn’t tell anyone?” Tony asked.

“Only…Only Ned.” Zayden said. “I think…I think a few of my other friends know or speculate it but aren’t saying anything.”

Harley whispered. “Do you want to go?”

“No. You said I’d have to do it eventually, didn’t you?” Zayden looked at him. “Before I lose my nerve.”

“Why is it that you listen to my advice, now of all times?”

“Cause I like to keep you on your toes.”

“Not cool, bro. Not cool.”

Zayden was going to continue the conversation but decided against it. It wouldn’t do any good to prolong the rest of the conversation that needed to occur regardless of the outcome or whether or not they liked it. Zayden had enough sense to know that.

“So Red Skull…” Pepper started, unsure of how to continue it.

“Didn’t care. He wanted both of us anyway so getting us while we were together was basically a pot of gold for him.” Zayden said. “Though he wanted me mostly. To pay for what my grandfather had done.”

“Which is stupid.” Harley hissed quietly under his breath. He spoke louder. “Yeah, Red Skull didn’t want to kill us but he was going to if he could. The avalanche we think was crafted to cave the ceiling around us and it actually worked but we miraculously survived and got out.”

Zayden nodded and he could tell that the adults were sickened by this behaviour.

Tony cursed loudly. “Fuck! We should’ve killed him when we had the chance. He was right there!”

Zayden wasn’t sure how that would’ve changed the outcome. He still would be covered in wounds and perhaps they would’ve gotten attacked by the agents if the cave in didn’t kill or knock them out. There is little chance of some of them escaping – doesn’t mean that they’re not out there.

“They knew I’d be here.” Zayden said quietly. “Somehow they knew I’d be here and were just lying in wait for me to show myself. If you didn’t come and get me then Red Skull would’ve revealed me as your son.”

“How did he know that you weren’t Richard and Mary’s son?” Pepper asked.

“Because Obadiah agreed to get me and have Hydra agents come in and will hand me to them while acting as though it happened so fast and he couldn’t stop them from taking me.” Zayden shrugged. “It would’ve worked but…Richard heard it and went to fix it. Also HYDRA made sure that their actual son had died when he was born so one of their doctors was in the same hospital.”

“How-“

“My uncle Ben…Richard never kept him out of the loop of what was going on and that is why I was with Ben and May instead of the plane that Richard and Mary were on. So HYDRA wasn’t aware that I was still around and possibly hoped I was on the plane but that didn’t happen.”

Tony sighed. “You’ve known all this time.”

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t tell us?”

“Would you have believed me?” Zayden met his challenge. “We met when I was already a teenager and people know about your missing child. You could’ve easily thought I was acting and lying, plus my DNA is so fucked up now from the spider bite that it can be hard to pinpoint the actual human DNA.”

“Did you want to tell us?”

“Yes, but you had Harley and I stepped back.”

“I told you.” Harley whispered. “They still would’ve taken you back in.”

Zayden didn’t bother replying. He said what he said and wasn’t going to change his words.

“Zayden-“

“Can I go home?” Zayden asked, aware of their flinch at the reference to the apartment he lived in with his Aunt May instead of here with them. “May is probably beside herself with worry and my friends would love to properly reassure themselves that I’m alright.”

Tony and Pepper shared a look before nodding.

“You can leave tomorrow morning. Happy will take you home.”

“Thanks.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“That went relatively well.” Harley said from where he sat on the bed as Zayden made sure he had everything. He was leaving in an hour after all.

“Could’ve gone worse.” Zayden agreed and stood up and stretched. “Don’t answer any of their questions.”

“Unless I have answers?”

“Yeah…I guess you can do that if that’s the case.” He looked around the room and sighed.

“Tony and Pepper may leave this as your room here.” Harley stated as he watched Zayden’s gaze sweep the room. “They probably will. It’s part of the family area, I requested it be here because I said it would be close to my room and the corridors are simple enough when you are drugged out on pain killers and injections to help with healing.”

“Smart.”

“Are you patronising me?”

“No.”

“Sounds like you are.”

“I’m just saying it was smart in your explanation as to why my room should be here without telling them why.” Zayden looked at him and groaned as he looked at the time. “I wish I could sleep.”

“They’d want you to stay here.”

“I know.”

“Do you want to?”

“No idea.”

“You are always welcome. They won’t oppose to it.”

“I know.”

“Will you return to your internship?”

That made Zayden pause and he turned his head to look at Harley who was very clearly worried and cautious of overstepping boundaries for questions.

“We’ll see.”

It wasn’t the truth but Zayden wasn’t sure if he could keep up the internship with them knowing that he is their child.

Hey, it went well.

That is all that matters, right?


End file.
